The Shinobi Who Overcame Time
by ReverseFlash1995
Summary: When sixteen year old Boruto Uzumaki is literally thrown back in time during his battle with Kawaki, he finds himself taking part in the origin story of his father, Naruto, and his father's closest friends, Sakura Haruno, and his old master, Sasuke Uchiha, thus rewriting history as a result. This can only end well, can't it? Contains Naruhina, Sassaku, MitsuSara, and Borusumi.
1. Chapter One

**Hello, internet! Welcome to the official relaunch of The Shinobi Who Overcame Time! Now, you might be wondering why it is I've decided to relaunch this project when it was doing so good before hand. Well, to that I say this. I may have done goofed with certain facts about the canon with the previous incarnation of the story, as right now my knowledge of the Naruto-verse is pretty much limited to badly scratched and virtually unreadable DVDs borrowed from an old friend of mine, and the Naruto Wiki, which is why this is an AU story, so I don't have to rely on these sources as much. With luck, I'll be able to get my hands on the complete series with the disks in good shape, as well as find the movies for a decent price online. Well, with that being said, let's begin!**

 _Chapter One: The Fight for the Scroll of Sealing_

 _Konoha-2003_

In the middle of a dark side alley, a shimmering vortex appeared for only the briefest of moments before a young man of around the age of sixteen was tossed out of it, screaming what sounded like the back half of "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" before landing several feet away, hard. The boy had spiky blond hair that somehow resembled a leaf, a white and blue left eye and a black and almost pure white right eye, which also bore a large scar and two whisker markings on each of his cheeks. He also had a black diamond-shaped marking on his right palm, in which was a katana, an elaborate sigil tattooed on his right arm, which also covered part of his hand, and wore a black and red unzipped and tattered jacket with a white shirt underneath, a bolt on a string and a small locket around his neck, a tan leather belt, short black pants, brown shinobi sandals, a black cloak, a scabbard on his back, and a Leaf Village Shinobi headband with two intersecting slashes on it.

Pulling himself off the ground, the young man looked around, realizing that something was off about where he was. Emerging from the alleyway, he found himself at a loss for words when he looked around at the Village Hidden in The Leaves.

 _Wha…? Where am I? WHEN am I? This isn't the same Konoha that I grew up knowing,_ thought Boruto Uzumaki as he sheathed his sword and took to the rooftops to get a better look at his surroundings.

What he saw made his jaw drop like a sack of bricks.

Gone were the industrial complexes, the skyscrapers, and the Thunder Rail he'd grown up knowing, and a grand total of four faces were chiseled into Hokage Rock, as opposed to the seven that were on the mountain before it had been destroyed.

 _Was I… sent back to my parents' childhood? Did Kawaki throw me back to the early 2000's?_ thought Boruto as he looked around wildly at the scenery before him, before catching sight of the Ninja Academy. Boruto's eyes widened as his Jogan Eye picked up the dark aura of negative emotions, focused on an individual at the Academy.

 _Better check it out,_ thought Boruto as he leaped off the rooftop and made his way towards the Ninja Academy.

…

Naruto Uzumaki sat by himself on a wooden swing, feeling thoroughly depressed. He had blonde wavy hair, and wore an orange and black jacket with a black shirt underneath, orange pants, the standard shinobi sandals, and a pair of green goggles on his forehead. For the third time in a row, he had failed the graduation exam, and his dream of becoming the greatest of the Hokage was still out of his reach, increasingly so it seemed.

"There he is," said an onlooker. "You see him?"

"It's that boy. I heard he's the only one who failed," said a second.

The first onlooker sneered. "Serves him right."

"Just imagine what would happen if he became a ninja."

Naruto heaved a sigh and looked down at the ground. Until that is, someone walked up to him. Looking up, Naruto saw that it was one of his sensei, Mizuki, who wore the standard Leaf Village Shinobi outfit, consisting of a green flak jacket with a black long sleeved shirt bearing a red insignia on his arm, black pants with a small pouch wrapped around his right knee, and blue shinobi sandals.

"Hey," said Mizuki, a gentle smile on his face. "Must be pretty rough, watching everyone else graduate while you get left behind… again. You wanna talk about it?"

Naruto shrugged. "Got nothin' better to do with my time," he said, his voice filled with pain, sadness, and loneliness.

Mizuki jerked his head. "Come on, let's get outta here."

And with that, the ninja and the student departed from the Academy… unaware that they were being followed by someone who looked a lot like Naruto himself, who had been lurking in the shadows, concealed, using his dojutsu to detect that Mizuki had ill intentions for Naruto.

 _Better see what they're up to… if my father gets himself killed… I won't even be dead,_ thought Boruto as took care to maintain his distance so Mizuki couldn't sense his chakra, but close enough to keep Mizuki in the sights of his Jogan Eye.

…

As the sun began to set over Konoha, Mizuki and Naruto were deep in their conversation.

"Look, Iruka-Sensei's tough, but he's not against you," said Mizuki.

"Then why? Why only me?" asked Naruto.

"He wants you to be strong with all his heart. But, that will never happen if he goes easy on you," explained Mizuki. "He's like you, you know. No parents, no family."

"But… this time I really wanted to graduate…"

Mizuki smirked as he looked at Naruto. "Then, I guess I have to tell you."

"Huh?" said Naruto as he looked back at Mizuki.

"It's a secret, but I'm gonna let you in on it," said Mizuki.

 _A secret…_ thought Naruto. "What's the secret? Tell me!"

"All right, all right. There's this scroll inside Lord Hokage's place. A scroll full of advanced jutsu. If anyone can learn a jutsu from that scroll and perform that jutsu in front of one of their sensei, then they automatically become genin. If you can get the scroll, then I'll be able to teach you these jutsu. Think you're up to it?"

Naruto, his eyes alight with a glimmer of hope at the thought of finally being able to graduate and become a Genin, nodded fervently, never mind the fact that he'd just been asked to break into a government official's home and steal something of incredible value.

"Good. Then if you can get the scroll, meet me at an old shack in the forest about… two or three kilometers west from the village gate. I'd suggest going by night. You'll have the cover of darkness to work with then."

"All right! I'm gonna go and get ready! I'll meet you at the shack tonight!" said Naruto

With that, Naruto was off, leaping from building to building as Mizuki watched, chuckling.

"Little fool… that was too easy," he said before taking off himself.

…

Boruto emerged from his hiding spot, having found an idea place to see and hear everything, without being seen and heard himself.

 _Well, then… I guess I'll be seeing you two tonight as well…_ he thought.

…

 _Later that night…_

Iruka, a young man with tan skin and brown hair tied into a topknot with a scar across the bridge lay in his bed wearing only his black pajamas and Shinobi headband. He was thinking about a conversation he and Lord Hokage had had earlier that day about Naruto…

" _Iruka…" said the old man wearing the ceremonial red and white robes and sun hat of the Hokage as he and Iruka walked into the empty classroom._

" _What is it?" asked Iruka._

" _I know how you feel. You grew up just like Naruto. Without knowing the love of a mother and father. The warmth of a family…"_

At these words, Iruka thought back to the day his mother and father died. The day the Nine-Tailed Fox had attacked and all but destroyed the village.

A loud knock on the door pulled Iruka out of his thoughts. "Iruka-Sensei, wake up!" called Mizuki from out the door. Putting his flip-flops on, Iruka opened the door to see what the trouble was.

"What? What is it?" asked Iruka.

"You need to come to Lord Hokage's right away! It's Naruto, he stole the sacred scroll!" said Mizuki.

Iruka's eyes widened at this information. "You mean the Scroll of Sealing?! No!" he yelled.

…

Meanwhile, in the forest, just outside the old shack Mizuki had told him to meet him at, Naruto sat under the shade of a tree, reading from the scroll he'd taken.

"Okay, let's see… the first one is… 'Multi-Shadow Clone jutsu,'" read Naruto before smacking him himself in the forehead in frustration. "Oh, not this again! That's my worst jutsu!"

…

Back in the village, a group of Shinobi yelled aloud about Naruto's theft of the Scroll of Sealing.

"Lord Hokage, this is not just a prank, this is a serious crime!" said a burly-looking Shinobi.

"That scroll contains secrets that were sealed away by the first Hokage, secrets known only to our village!" said a second Shinobi with an eyepatch.

"If it falls into the wrong hands, it could destroy our entire way of life!" said a third Shinobi as Iruka and Mizuki joined the group.

"All right. Bring Naruto here at once!" said Lord Hokage, giving the signal for the Shinobi to move out.

"Sir!" said the Shinobi as they leaped away in pursuit of Naruto.

As he leapt from rooftop to rooftop, Iruka searched all over the Hidden Leaf Village for Naruto.

 _Where would he go?_ thought Iruka right before a voice spoke up behind him.

"So, you're Iruka. My father always spoke fondly of you."

Iruka whirled around, shuriken at the ready, to find someone standing on a balcony behind him. Someone who looked a lot like Naruto, but with several noticeable differences, such as the hairstyle, the outfit, the scar, and the eye that could only be a dojutsu derived from a kekkei genkai.

"Start talking, who are you? Why do you look just like Naruto Uzumaki?" demanded Iruka.

"Well, then, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Boruto. Boruto Uzumaki. Son of the Seventh Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki, from the… not-so-far future," said Boruto.

Iruka clenched his teeth in anger. "Do you really expect me to believe that bullcrap?!" he bellowed.

"Of course not. Which is why I've brought evidence," said Boruto as he pulled out a small handheld device unknown to Iruka and began fiddling with it. "Wow, great reception… let's see now… ah! There we go! Catch!"

Boruto tossed the device to Iruka, who caught it, only to nearly drop it in shock at what he saw on it.

It was a picture of the teenager before him and what was unmistakably an older Naruto with a different hairstyle and what seemed to be a futuristic right arm.

"You… you're really… from the future?" said Iruka in shock.

"Indeed I am. I also happen to know where my father ran off to. If we hurry, we might get there before it's too late."

…

Elsewhere, Mizuki was running through the village streets at top speeds. Everything was proceeding according to his plan.

 _Now that I've told everyone what Naruto did, I can eliminate him. They'll be glad he's gone. And of course, I keep the scroll for myself,_ he thought, smirking as he ran.

…

 _Two Hours Later…_

Naruto sat on the ground, panting and out of breath, having worked very hard to the point of near exhaustion in order to master the technique he'd learned from the scroll as footsteps approached him. Naruto looked up to see that it was Iruka.

"It's all over," Iruka said, chuckling as he spoke.

Naruto chuckled as he stood up. "Got me already, not bad. You're quick, sensei, I only had time to learn one technique."

 _He's been out here practicing. I can tell how hard he's been working,_ thought Iruka.

"Listen, Iruka-Sensei! I'm gonna show you this amazing technique, then you're gonna let me graduate, and then everything will be okay! That's the way it works, right? Anyone who learns a jutsu from this scroll passes!"

"Huh?! Where'd you get that idea?"

"Mizuki-Sensei told me about it! Believe it! He told me where to find the scroll, and this place…" said Naruto, before realizing that something was off, judging by the look on Iruka's face.

 _Huh?! Mizuki?_ thought Iruka as the pieces began falling into place.

A split-second later, a hailstorm of kunai knives came flying at Naruto and Iruka, the latter of whom caught sight of the attack. "Look out!" cried Iruka as he pushed Naruto out of the way, getting hit by several of the kunai in the process.

"Well, well. It looks like you've found our little hideaway," said Mizuki from the top branch of a nearby tree. "Naruto! Give me the scroll! Now!"

"W-wait a minute! What's going on here?!" demanded Naruto.

"Naruto! Don't let Mizuki get the scroll! It contains forbidden jutsu that could put this village in grave danger! Mizuki used you to get the scroll for himself, for his own power!" said Iruka, causing Naruto to glare angrily at Mizuki.

"Naruto, Iruka's just trying to scare you because he doesn't want you to have the scroll!" said Mizuki, causing Naruto to become confused and look back and forth between Iruka and Mizuki, unsure who to believe.

"Stop lying, Mizuki! Naruto! Don't let him trick you!" said Iruka.

Mizuki chuckled humorlessly. "Oh, I'll tell you who's _really_ lying!" he said.

"No, Mizuki!" yelled Iruka.

"They've been lying to you your whole life, Naruto. Since the decree twelve years ago," said Mizuki, pressing on relentlessly.

"What… decree?" said Naruto, growing more and more confused by the minute.

"Everyone knows, except you. Iruka's trying to hide it from you even now, he'd do anything to shut me up!"

"What is this decree? How come everyone else knows about it?" asked Naruto, growing ever the more confused.

"Don't, Mizuki, it's forbidden!" yelled Iruka.

"The decree is no one can tell you the Nine-Tailed Fox is inside _you!"_ said Mizuki, causing Naruto to gasp aloud in shock. "The fox spirit that killed Iruka's parents and destroyed our village has taken over your body! You _are_ the Nine-Tailed Fox!"

"Stop it!" yelled Iruka, the kunai he was pinned down by tearing through his flak jacket as Mizuki pressed on relentlessly.

"They've all been sneaking around, hiding things from you your whole life! Didn't you think it was strange, how they treated you? Like dirt. Like they hated you for just being alive!"

"No!" yelled Naruto as tears began to run down his face and his chakra began to swirl around him. "No, no, no, no, no!"

"Naruto!" said Iruka, feeling helpless.

"That's why you'll never be accepted in this village! Even your beloved sensei hates your guts!" yelled Mizuki.

As Mizuki continued his ranting and raving, Iruka thought back to the conversation he had with Lord Hokage.

" _Iruka. Naruto never had a mother or father to care for him. He's shut out of everything and doesn't know why, most people won't even look at him. How would you feel if everywhere you went, people turned their backs on you? That's why he gets into trouble, so people will notice him. He may not show it, but he's always thinking about the family he doesn't have. He's hurting inside…"_

"DIE, NARUTO!" yelled Mizuki as he spun and threw one of the giant shuriken he had on his back while Naruto desperately tried to get out of the way.

"NARUTO, GET DOWN!" yelled Iruka as he broke free from the kunai and shielded Naruto with his own body.

The giant shuriken landed a bull's eye directly on the insignia on the back of Iruka's jacket, causing him to cough up a little blood, which landed directly on Naruto as Mizuki glared down at them in anger.

"Wh...why?" asked Naruto, tears starting to run down his face.

"Because we're the same," said Iruka. "When I lost my parents, no one seemed to care. They just didn't have time for me… they forgot I was there. My grades dropped. I became the class clown. I just wanted them to see me. To know my name. My schoolwork wasn't good enough to get their attention, so I did crazy things. And then I had to pay for it. It was hard… I know that's how you feel. You feel lonely and it hurts inside. And I could've been there for you more. I let you down. I'm sorry. No one should have to suffer that much. No one should be alone like that."

Mizuki chuckled. "Don't make me laugh! Iruka always hated you! He was orphaned because the Nine-Tailed Fox killed his parents! And that beast is now inside you! He'd say anything to get the scroll from you!"

At these words, Naruto took one look at Iruka, before he shot off like a bottle rocket.

"Naruto!" called Iruka as tears began running down his face. "NARUTO!"

Mizuki leaped down from his tree branch and chuckled. "You know, once he makes up his mind, nothing can change it. He's going to use the scroll to take revenge on the village. You saw that look in his eyes, didn't you? Those are the eyes of a beast."

Iruk grunted as he pulled the giant shuriken from his back. "No… Naruto… ISN'T LIKE THAT!" he yelled before he threw the giant shuriken at Mizuki with all his strength before falling onto one knee.

Smooth as anything, Mizuki merely sidestepped the projectile, which went soaring up into the trees. "You're a joke. As soon as I eliminate Naruto and get the scroll… I'll be back for you," he said before taking off through the trees after Naruto.

Iruka glared in the direction Mizuki had gone. _My new friend and I won't let you!_ he thought.

…

Back at the Hokage's home, Lord Hokage gazed into his crystal ball, watching as Naruto leapt from tree branch to tree branch.

 _This is not good. Mizuki has a big mouth. He made Naruto feel so bad. Worse than he's ever felt. It could unleash the power inside of him. If Naruto keeps tampering with the scroll, the seal that locks the fox spirit inside of him could be broken, and the beast could come out. And if that happens, I fear for us all…_ thought Lord Hokage.

 _And yet, recovering the scroll isn't the only pressing matter tonight,_ thought Lord Hokage as the crystal ball's image changed to that of Boruto, who used a Transformation Jutsu to become a duplicate of Naruto and took off after Mizuki, who was hot on Naruto's heels. _That Shinobi who bears a great resemblance to Naruto himself… we must determine his identity and what his intentions are. His right eye is clearly a form of dojutsu, a kekki genki that seems to resemble the Byakugan of the Hyuga Clan, but clearly, it is something entirely different…_

…

Iruka had nearly caught up with Naruto and managed to pull ahead and keep up with him. "Naruto! Everything Mizuki said was a lie! Give me the scroll! Hurry! He's coming after you to take it away!" said Iruka.

Naruto angled himself before tackling Iruka in the air, knocking the wind out of the Shinobi and sending them both tumbling to the forest floor below.

"It can't be…" said 'Iruka' as he pulled himself off the ground while Naruto took a fighting stance that seemed familiar to 'Iruka' somehow. "How did you know, Naruto? How did you know…" said 'Iruka' before he turned back into Mizuki in a puff of smoke "...that it was me and not Iruka."

'Naruto' chuckled as a cocky smirk crossed his face. "It wasn't that hard. Apart from the fact that you didn't have a scratch on you when I saw Iruka get hit with projectiles…" he said before he turned back into Boruto in a puff of smoke. "...there is no disguise or trick that I can't see right through."

Mizuki let out a gasp of shock, as did the real Naruto, who was hiding nearby.

 _Wh-who is that guy? Why does he look like me? Is he me from the future or something?_ thought Naruto, utterly confused as his doppleganger got up and took a fighting stance.

"Who are you supposed to be?" asked Mizuki as he took a fighting stance of his own.

"They call me Boruto Uzumaki of the Jogan Eye. I am the son of the Seventh Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki. And I will not allow you harm a hair on my father's head!" said Boruto, causing both Mizuki and Naruto to gasp aloud.

 _He's my what now?!_ thought Naruto, his mind reeling with this information that not only would he actually manage to achieve his dream of becoming Lord Hokage, but have a family as well, meaning that he would someday be accepted by the village.

"Surprised, Mizuki?"

Mizuki looked up and saw the Iruka was lying down, still apparently wounded, on a tree branch, a smirk on his face. "So was I. But, he seems to check out, and I gotta say, he couldn't have picked a better time to appear, pun not intended. After all, if Naruto were truly like the Nine-Tailed Fox, there's no way he could show the love and compassion needed to have a family. So, it looks like you're wrong. Naruto is nothing like the Nine-Tailed Fox. He's Naruto Uzumaki of the Village Hidden in the Leaves!"

Mizuki growled in frustration and anger. "So, the little freak ends up having a little bastard cub and manages to become Hokage by some amazing stroke of luck, so what? I've read enough time travel stories to know that all I have to do is kill Naruto, and this little bastard will never be born!" he snarled.

"Oh, so you want to make this personal, do you?" said Boruto, maintaing his composure. "Can't say I didn't warn you."

A moment later, a glowing ball of yellow chakra energy appeared in Boruto's open hand, causing both Iruka and Mizuki's eyes to widen in shock.

 _That's the-!_ thought Mizuki.

 _That's the Rasengan! The signature stabbing technique of the Fourth Hokage! But, where would he have picked that up from?_ thought Iruka.

 _I gotta stop him!_ thought Mizuki as he performed a series of hand signs.

However, he was too late to do much of anything, as Boruto's Rasengan reached optimal levels. "From the future with love!" yelled Boruto as he launched his Rasengan at Mizuki.

Only for it to vanish in mid-flight.

Mizuki chuckled. "Like father, like son. The Rasengan is supposed to be a stab technique, not a projectile, you idiot! Clearly you have no talents as a Shinobi! Time to wrap this up! Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" yelled Mizuki as he hurled the second and last of the giant shuriken on his back and shrouded it in flames, forcing Boruto to dive out of the way as the shuriken swerved up towards the trees and Iruka, who had no energy left to even try to get out of the way.

 _So, this is it…_ thought Iruka.

A split-second later, an unseen chakra blast knocked Mizuki off his feet and sent him flying through the air and into a nearby tree, causing him to cough up blood, while Naruto emerged from his hiding place and got Iruka out of harm's way before the burning projectile could do any damage.

"Ha! How d'ya like them apples! That was a variant of the Rasengan I didn't so much invent as it was a happy accident: the Vanishing Rasengan!" said Boruto as he pulled himself off the ground.

"Not bad, junior," said Naruto, giving his future son a cocky smirk.

"Don't call me that, ever again, Dad," Boruto said, glaring down at his future father.

"As for you, Mizuki, if you ever lay a finger on my sensei or my son again… I'll kill you," said Naruto.

Mizuki laughed, although it really sounded more like a wheeze. "That Vanishing Rasengan trick of your bastard's may have gotten me on the ropes, but I could still obliterate you with one move!"

"Let's see you try it!" yelled Naruto.

"Oh, yeah?! Show me what you can do, Nine-Tailed Fox!" spat Mizuki.

"SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!" yelled Naruto as he made a hand sign.

A split-second later, hundreds if not thousands of Naruto clones appeared, completely surrounding Mizuki, Boruto, and Iruka, the latter of whom broke into a smile.

 _Those aren't just illusions, those are solid clones! He's mastered an extremely advanced jutsu!_ thought Iruka as Mizuki looked around in horror at the army of Narutos that were all calling out to him.

"Well, if you're not gonna come here…" said one of the Narutos.

"Then we're gonna come after you!" said a second Naruto, right before the whole bunch of them ganged up on Mizuki, who screamed to the heavens as the clones pummeled him into unconsciousness.

…

As dawn broke over the horizon, Mizuki was twitching in pain on the ground as Naruto rubbed the back off his head and chuckled sheepishly. "Sorry, I kinda got carried away. You okay, Iruka-Sensei?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah," said Iruka. _He's amazing! He wants to surpass all the Hokage! And if what Boruto over there says is true, then Naruto might just do it,_ he thought. "Hey, Naruto, come here a minute. I have something I want to give you."

…

Back in the village, the Shinobi were more worried than ever, as not a single one of them could find Naruto, and Iruka and Mizuki were missing.

Before long, however, Lord Hokage emerged from his home. "There's no longer any need to worry," he said to the Shinobi as he smoked on his pipe. "The scroll's safe, Naruto will be back soon. And more importantly, it seems as though we have a new, powerful Shinobi ally in our midst, one who has come from the not-too-distant future, it seems… although how and why, I cannot say, but I have every intention of finding out…"

…

"Sensei, how much longer?" asked Naruto, who had his eyes shut.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now," said Iruka.

As Naruto opened his eyes, a ray of bright sunshine entered the forest. As Naruto's eyes adjusted to the light, he quickly realized that Iruka's headband was gone, and that Iruka was holding his goggles.

"Congratulations! You graduate!" said Iruka. "And to celebrate, I have a surprise: we're going out for ramen tonight."

Boruto smiled. _Well, I may prefer a good burger, but I do love me some good ramen, just like my father,_ he thought.

Naruto stood there, stunned for a moment, before he tackled Iruka happily and gave him a big hug.

 _The road gets tougher now that you're a ninja, Father. Iruka should probably tell him that, but it'd probably kill the mood,_ thought Boruto before he let out a huge yawn. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but traveling back decades in time takes a lot out of a guy. As my Sensei once told me, 'rest can be as deadly a weapon as a kunai or jutsu.' Mind if I crash at your place, Dad? I can sleep on the floor."

Naruto looked over at his future son and smiled. "Sure, but only on the condition that you call me by my name. It's a little weird for me to be called 'Dad' when I'm only a kid myself."

"Fair enough," said Boruto with a smile.

"Say, Boruto…" said Naruto. "If I'm your Dad, then who's my wife?"

 **And… cut, print, check the gate, moving on! Hopefully I've gotten my facts right this time, and ironed out some of the flaws with this chapter as well. Stay tuned for the new-and-improved version of Chapter Two! In the meantime, fave, follow, and review! Also, be sure to vote on that poll on my profile,** _ **would you kindly?**_


	2. Chapter Two

**Hello, internet! Welcome back to The Shinobi Who Overcame Time! Once more, in the previous version of this chapter, I've made a couple of continuity errors with what's happened thus far in the anime, as well as perhaps ended the chapter a bit too soon. It is my hope to patch up both of those errors. Well, I've babbled for long enough, let's begin!**

 _Chapter Two: A Man Out of Time_

"Aw, come on! Just tell me who it is!" begged Naruto as he, Iruka, and Boruto made their way back to Lord Hokage's place. Boruto's dojutsu had deactivated, leaving both his eyes white and blue. The unconscious Mizuki was slung over Iruka's shoulder as they walked. For the past few minutes, Naruto had been trying to get the identity of his future wife out from Boruto, with no success.

"My answer is the same as before, Naruto, I can't tell you. It's bad enough that you know you're gonna become the Seventh Hokage and have kids. I can't risk altering the timeline further than it already has been by my presence alone. There's no telling what could happen if you find out anything else," said Boruto.

"Well, I'm your father, and I'm demanding you tell me who the future Mrs. Uzumaki is!" said Naruto, glaring at Boruto and stomping his foot. "It's Sakura, isn't it? _Please_ tell me it's Sakura."

Boruto couldn't help but chuckle. "You really have a thing for Sakura, don't you? You know, you might be looking for love in all the wrong places. I'm willing to bet that your determination might've caught a few eyes, made a few kunoichi start checking you out. Who's to say someone else may have already given you her heart, watching you from the shadows all this time as you tried to master that Shadow Clone jutsu and whatever else you fought to perfect, like a little flower on the wall."

As Naruto looked completely confused by this cryptic statement, Boruto winked at Iruka, who quickly picked up on what Boruto was implying.

 _Ah… Hinata Hyuga is his mother. That would explain the dojutsu in his right eye,_ thought Iruka, smirking, thus getting Naruto even more confused and frustrated than before. _Although, it certainly didn't seem like the Byakugan or any dojutsu I've ever seen._

"Look, you're a little young to be thinking about love, marriage, and baby carriages. You've got your entire life to worry about, and your ninja training as well. Besides, I think you have more pressing matters to deal with," said Boruto, pointing towards the entrance to the Hokage's place, where a group of Shinobi were waiting for them, along with Lord Hokage and several ninja who seemed to be a bit different from the rest.

 _Shinobi from the Konoha Analysis Team. The Third Hokage must've called upon them to search my memories, make sure I am who I say I am,_ thought Boruto, glancing down at Naruto. _I just hope they don't tell Dad anything, or worse, have the Anbu Black Ops try to kill anyone significant from my past before they're even born. No telling what could happen then._

As the Shinobi started to move towards Naruto in anger, Lord Hokage spoke. "Stand was merely a pawn used by Mizuki, and more importantly, the Scroll of Sealing has been returned home. No harm has been done," he said before approaching the group.

Naruto turned beet red as he handed back the scroll. "Sorry I took this. I just really wanted to graduate the Academy," he said.

"And it seems you got what you wanted. Yet, there is still much you must learn before you can become a true ninja. For now, however, go home. You've had a very busy night," said Lord Hokage.

"Sure thing, Lord Hokage. See you back at home, Boruto!" said Naruto as he took about ten steps, before promptly falling to the ground, where he promptly began snoring loudly.

As Iruka handed Mizuki over to a few other Shinobi, who departed with the rest save for the Analysis Team Shinobi, and picked up Naruto in a fireman's carry, Boruto couldn't help but watch in amazement.

 _If I didn't know for certain he was my father, there's no way I would've known he was my father. Dad told me about his past, but it's almost like he and this kid are two completely different people,_ thought Boruto before Lord Hokage addressed him.

"You… your name was Burrito or something of the like, was it not?" the Hokage asked Boruto, who chuckled.

"Boruto, actually. But, I can't tell you how many times I've been called 'burrito.' A pleasure to meet you, Lord Third Hokage," said Boruto, taking a bow.

"Yes, you claim that Naruto Uzumaki will not only become your father, but the Seventh Hokage as well…" said Lord Hokage.

"But, of course, you want to have my memories checked, just in case," said Boruto. "Kinda figured that was the case when I saw the Shinobi from the Analysis Team waiting here."

"A very astute and accurate observation, Boruto. I do hope you'll forgive my caution, as even I am not familiar with any form of jutsu or any other method to allow one travel back decades in time, as you apparently have."

"I understand. I'll let you search my memories on two conditions: one, no one else can know about what you learn. It must stay between you, me, the Analysis Team, and the Anbu Black Ops. Two, nothing is to be done to alter what you learn. From what I've read, changing the past is a very risky business, and I don't want to risk destroying the universe or being erased from existence anymore than I already have with my presence alone," said Boruto.

The Hokage smiled. "Seeing as your terms are very reasonable, I agree to them. Now, let's get started, shall we?"

Boruto nodded and followed the Hokage and the Analysis Team through the city streets and into the Intelligence Division of the Village.

"You know, even in my time, I've never actually been in this place," commented Boruto as he handed over his sword, shuriken, and other weapons. Once his weapons were removed, the ninja led Boruto to a room where a man who the teenage Shinobi noted bore a great resemblance to Ino Yamanaka, mother of his old friend Inojin, stood waiting for him.

"I take it you're our guest?" asked the man, Inoichi Yamanaka, motioning for Boruto to follow him.

"Indeed I am," said Boruto as the two of them arrived at a large device that he could only assume was for interrogation purposes. "That looks uncomfortable."

"Get in," said Inoichi as several other ninja gathered around the back of the device.

Boruto complied and entered the device, which encased him up to his neck, trapping him in a kneeling position.

Inoichi and the other ninja performed a series of hand signs before Inoichi placed his hand on Boruto's head and called out, "Ninja Art: Psycho Mind Transmission Jutsu!"

A moment later, Inoichi and the other ninja entered Boruto's subconscious mind, and were quickly amazed by what they saw.

They saw Konoha, but much larger than the village they currently lived in and protected, with a train known as the Thunder Rail weaving in and out through the village, or more accurately, the city. They saw Naruto Uzumaki, now much older with a different hairstyle and a prosthetic arm, being knocked unconscious by his own daughter after he'd tried shielding Boruto from her rage after he accidentally decapitated her favorite panda toy. Then they saw Boruto, a cunning, self-possessed, and arrogant trickster who often times cheated to get what he wanted. They saw his various adolescent adventures, his awakening his dojutsu, a talent only he possessed that he named the Jogan, learning and even improving on the Rasengan with training from the future incarnation of the Honorable Grandson of the Third Hokage, and his training with the future incarnation of Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto's "Supporting Kage," as well as his falling in love with a girl by the name of Sumire Kakei, as well as their first date and their first kiss.

Then they saw it… the destruction of Konoha at the hands of a man named Kawaki, who seemed to be hellbent on destroying the Shinobi. Naruto was killed in the battle, along with Hinata, Naruto's wife, along with Sasuke and his wife, Sakura, who he'd died trying to protect. Himawari, Sumire, Boruto, Sarada Uchiha, and a boy named Mitsuki along with several other young ninja were among the only survivors. Boruto's face had been scarred in the evacuation when one of Kawaki's men struck him. Had it not been for Sarada, the damage could've been much more severe than a mere disfiguration. Several months later, Boruto had faced Kawaki in mortal combat, and was thrown through time for his trouble, arriving in their time period only yesterday.

Inoichi removed his hand from Boruto's head, gazing at him with a look of the utmost shock on his face that matched the rest of the ninja.

 _He spoke the truth. He really is Naruto's son from the future,_ thought Inoichi before he spoke "Get him out of there. He's telling the truth."

The ninja nodded and allowed Boruto to leave the machine and collect his weapons before using the bathroom. When he returned, he found Inoichi speaking with Lord Hokage. As he approached, both senior ninja turned to him.

"Ah, there he is. Inoichi was telling me about the remarkable aspects of your time period and about that fascinating dojutsu of yours," said the Third Hokage.

"It truly is remarkable that time travel jutsu are even possible, even if you weren't sent here on your own accord," said Inoichi.

"Come. I will take you to your father's apartment. We've much to discuss on the way there," said Lord Hokage.

Boruto bowed. "Thank you, Lord Hokage," he said before he and the Hokage left the intelligence building.

…

As Boruto and the Hokage walked down the village streets, many people gave Boruto curious looks, no doubt because of his resemblance to Naruto, the village idiot.

"It must be terrible for you to be marooned in this time. Cut off from the world you know and the one you loved the most," said the Hokage.

"Yes. But, I think I can make do with the hand I've been dealt. It'll be a real honor seeing my parents, my old mentor and his wife, and all my childhood friends parents grow up, learning about their past the way it really happened. Know any good places to set up a fortune teller business?" asked Boruto.

The Third Hokage laughed. "Someone from the future and with a hitherto unknown dojutsu such as yourself would make a killing as a fortune teller. Actually, given what Inoichi told me about you, I have a different career in mind for you."

"And that would be?"

"I'll be assigning you to help Kakashi Hatake train his new squad, which I intend to have your father be apart of, as well as some solo missions as they come up, given how you managed to become a Jonin not long before you came here. I must say, becoming a Jonin at your age is a feat that would make both your bloodlines proud," said Lord Hokage.

"Heh, Sarada got to that rank about a year ahead of me. She wanted to become the Eighth Hokage more than anything, and she would've been able to do it, if not for Kawaki destroying our home," said Boruto. "I'm guessing you have one of these missions for me now?"

"Indeed I do. But, we will go over the details tonight. For now, however, you will need to rest up. I suspect you must be exhausted after the events of yesterday," said Lord Hokage as he and Boruto arrived at Naruto's apartment building, where Boruto was given a key. "Sleep well, Boruto."

"Thank you, Lord Hokage," said Boruto, taking a deep bow before entering the apartment building, the Hokage watching him go with a solemn expression on his face before departing for his home.

…

Once he was inside Naruto's apartment, Boruto took a quick look around at the small apartment, which really only consisted of one, rather spacious room. Naruto was fast asleep, still wearing his clothes from last night, although his jacket was on the coatrack and his goggles and new headband were resting on the dresser nearby.

 _Huh. I was expecting this place to be small, but not one-room small. Although, it is pretty spacious, despite the fact,_ thought Boruto as he removed his cloak and jacket and hung them up, before removing his sandals and shirt, revealing a toned and scarred body and a tatoo of some kind on his back that seemed to have a faint blue glow, similar to the sigil on his arm.

Opening the fridge, Boruto noticed that there wasn't really much there apart from ramen, orange juice, and an open carton of milk. Curious, Boruto took a wiff of the milk, only to nearly puke from the stench. Checking the date, Boruto noticed that the milk had been expired for over a month.

 _Good God, Dad, when was the last time you went grocery shopping and got something that wasn't ramen?_ thought Boruto, moving to throw the milk away, before thinking twice about it. A devious smirk formed as he put the milk back in the fridge.

 _And that, Dad, is just the beginning of my revenge for sending a Shadow Clone to Himawari's birthday party, among other things,_ thought Boruto.

Opening a nearby closet, Boruto was able to find some extra sheets and blankets. Grabbing one of the blankets, Boruto curled up on the floor at the foot of Naruto's bed, and almost instantly fell asleep.

…

 _Boruto slowly opened his eyes, and found that he was back in his bedroom in the Hidden Sound Village. The window was open and evening light was pouring in with the gentle breeze. Lying up against him was a girl about his age with long purple hair that hung loose across her back, on which was a red tatoo that was somewhat similar to the one on Boruto's back, the warmth of her body pressed against his making the Shinobi feel content._

 _Boruto smiled and placed his hand on Sumire's hair, stroking it gently. It had all been a dream. Being thrown back in time by Kawaki had all been a dream…_

 _Sumire opened her soft violet eyes and looked up at Boruto, a soft smile on her face. "Did it hurt, Boruto-Kun?" she asked._

" _Did what hurt, Sumi?" Boruto asked his girlfriend, looking down at her with a content smile._

" _Did it hurt when you weren't born anymore?" Sumire asked as her face changed rapidly into Momoshiki's._

 _Suddenly, Boruto's body began cracking apart and dissolving into blue energy at a rapid pace. He tried screaming for help but he couldn't, because he hadn't made a single noise in his non-exstant life. Before long, all that remained in existance was his floating, disembodied head, but that wouldn't last long._

 _The last thing he would see was the woman he loved bearing the face of the God he had killed…_

…

Boruto sat bolt upright from the floor, taking a massive gulp of air in the process as a cold sweat poured off of him like a heavy rain, and as a result, woke Naruto up, who sat bolt upright, screaming as well as evening light poured into the apartment.

"You have a bad dream?" Boruto asked his father.

"Yeah, did you?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah…" said Boruto. "Well, what happened in yours?"

"It was so weird. This woman and I were in this caravan, surrounded by midwives and these masked ninja that looked super-tough. We were attacked by this guy in a mask who killed the midwives and ninja protecting us, and this guy who looked like a mashup of me and the Fourth Hokage showed up and started kicking ass. It was so weird… almost like it really happened, like a memory, instead of a dream." said Naruto, before he noticed the markings on Boruto's back and arm. "Hey, where'd you get the awesome tatoos? I wouldn't mind having some myself, but no one will give me any, although I have this weird swirling pattern on my stomach that I don't remember getting. Guess that must be what's keeping that Nine-Tailed Fox inside me."

"They're not tatoos, they're marks. There's a difference," said Boruto.

"Well, where'd you get them? Because they look awesome, and I want ones just like them, believe it!"

Boruto chuckled. "You don't want these marks, trust me," he said.

"What do you mean?" asked Naruto, confused.

"Let's just say that anyone who kills a God ceases to be a normal person."

Before Naruto could inquire further, a knock was heard on the door.

"That must be Iruka. Listen, you go and enjoy your ramen, I gotta see what Lord Hokage wants with me," said Boruto as he put his shirt, jacket, cloak, sandals, and equipment back on before climbing out the apartment window and making his way towards Lord Hokage's place via the rooftops.

 **And… cut, print, check the gate! I think this version is much better than my original version. In any case, be sure to stay tuned for Chapter Three, and be sure to fave, follow, and review,** **as well as vote on the poll on my profile,** _ **would you kindly?**_


	3. Chapter Three

**Hello, internet! Welcome back to The Shinobi Who Overcame Time! Well, this story continues to exceed my expectations time and time again! So, let's not waste anymore time and get on with it already!**

 **UPDATE: Hey, guys. Well, for some reason the reviews for this chapter aren't appearing, so I took it down to try re-uploading it to see if that helped anything.**

 _Chapter Three: The Teacher, The Student, And The Student's Student_

As the moon rose higher into the night sky over the forest near Konoha, Boruto watched what Lord Hokage had told him to be a group of bandits that had been plaguing travelers as of late having dinner from his lofty perch in a tree branch. Except, these bandits didn't seem like normal bandits from where he was sitting, but rather ninja running training exercises. And, considering what his history books had told him about the Konoha Crush, there was only one thing these ninja could be.

 _Orochimaru's Sound Ninja. Must be training to attack the village. Not that it'll do them any good, in the end, although they will take the Third Hokage's life in the process. That much cannot be undone, as much as I wish I could change it. But, I've seen enough movies and read enough books to know what happens when you alter time like that,_ thought Boruto as he jumped off his lofty perch and landed silently behind the ninja.

"Hello, there," said Boruto, causing the ninja to turn around to face him. "I'm afraid you've drawn yourself the attention of Lord Hokage, and he's asked me to remove your bodies from the premises."

"Hmph. That old fool's days are numbered, as are yours," said one of the Sound Ninja. "You've never seen jutsu like ours."

"Is that so? Awful big talk coming from a second-rate thug. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you seem to think you're ninja or something. Very well, then, show me what you got," said Boruto, allowing a cocky smirk to cross his face.

"You asked for it, fool. Slicing Soundwave!" said one of the ninja, using the air cannons implanted in his arms to create a massive wave of sound.

Boruto's smirk never left his face as he spun around in a circle. "Rotation!" he yelled as he expelled chakra in a blast that created a virtually impenetrable barrier around him that protected him from the attack and took the enemy ninja by surprise.

"Was that your best shot? Now, let me show you mine," said Boruto before he activated his Jogan Eye and made a hand sign. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

In a puff of smoke, six more Borutos sprang into existence in puffs of smoke, all of which had their Jogans activated as the original performed a series of hand signs quick as a flash.

"All right, guys. Let's take 'em down," said Boruto, as one of the clones made a different hand sign from the original Boruto, while the remaining five made the same hand signs as the original Boruto.

"Wind Style: Gale Palm Jutsu!" said the clone as the original Boruto and the other clones' hand sparked with visible electrical chakra.

Using the clone's Galm Palm as a means of extra propulsion, Boruto and his clones launched themselves at the Sound Ninja, who could only stand there, despite making an effort to form some hand signs as Boruto and his clones yelled "Boruto Bolt!" and struck them down with their Chidoris.

"Heh. Pitiful. No wonder you guys needed the Hidden Sand Village's help for the Konoha Crush," said Boruto as the clones vanished in puffs of smoke. His job done, Boruto walked over and picked up the headband of one of the defeated Sound Ninja before making his way back to the village.

…

 _Later that night…_

Boruto placed the headband that he'd taken from Sound Ninja on Lord Hokage's desk, who looked at it with interest.

"Hmm… so it seems these 'bandits' are from an up and coming Shinobi village… this is troubling," said the Hokage.

"Yes. Judging from an attack used by one of these ninja, I can safely assume that they are somehow able to use their chakra to manipulate sound waves," said Boruto.

"Hmm… I'll have the Anbu look into this. In the meantime, there's someone who wishes to speak with you," said Lord Hokage.

"And who would that be?" asked Boruto.

"That would be me."

Boruto couldn't help but smirk as he turned to face the speaker. Standing directly behind Boruto was a young man only a few years older than Boruto with spikey silver hair that was parted to the left side, a green flak jacket, dark blue pants, a long-sleeve shirt, fingerless gloves with metal plates on the backhand, a mask that hid the lower part of his face, and a Konoha headband that hid his left eye from sight.

"Well, well. Kakashi Hatake himself," said Boruto.

"In the flesh. Lord Hokage tells me that you're Boruto Uzumaki, the son of the Nine-Tailed Fox's jinchuuriki from the not-too-distant future, and that he wants us to work together to train my next three-man cell of Academy graduates, including the Naruto Uzumaki of this time period," said Kakashi, an almost bored expression on what was visible on his face.

"That's what he tells me," said Boruto.

"If that's the case, then I'll need to know that you can not only handle yourself in a fight, but that you'll have my back as well."

"What did you have in mind?" asked Boruto.

Kakashi chuckled. "You against me, one-on-one, tomorrow at sundown. These are the coordinates," he said as he handed Boruto a slip of paper.

"All right, you're on," said Boruto as he took the paper.

Kakashi chuckled before he left the Hokage's office. "I suggest you return to your father's place and get some rest. You're gonna need all the rest and energy you can get."

…

 _The Following Morning…_

Naruto and a photographer stood on top of the Hokage Rock viewing platform, where Naruto was to have his ninja id photo taken. Naruto, for some reason unknown to man, wore white and red makeup on his face, hands, and more than likely the rest of his body.

"Listen, kid. Are you sure you want me to take your picture like that?" the photographer asked Naruto.

"Just do it, come on already, come on, come on!" said Naruto.

The photographer sighed. "Don't blame me later…" he said as he ducked under his covering and picked up the remote. "Say cheese!"

…

Meanwhile, Boruto was walking about the Hidden Leaf Village of his father's time, taking in the sights of the village. As he did so, the villagers who were out in the streets gave him curious and even suspicious looks, no doubt because of his resemblance to Naruto.

Boruto chuckled as he sensed that several of the villagers, along with some Shinobi, had decided to follow him, whether to attack him or simply see what he was up to, he couldn't say.

"I know you're following me back there," said Boruto, causing both the villagers and the Shinobi to freeze in their tracks. "I suggest you take a picture, it'll last longer-"

Before Boruto could finish speaking, he walked directly into someone. "Sorry, sir-" said Boruto before he caught a whiff of alcohol on the man he'd walked into, mere moments before the man threw a punch directly at Boruto's face.

Without so much as a change of expression, Boruto caught the punch and delivered a Gentle Fist strike directly to the drunken man's chest, causing him to cough up blood before falling to the ground, grunting and groaning in pain, but no longer a problem.

"You all saw it, he threw the first punch. I suggest you get him some medical attention," said Boruto coolly before he walked away. He had hardly made it two blocks before a voice called out to him.

"I saw what you did."

Boruto turned towards the source of the voice, his cloak fluttering the breeze, and found a young man around Naruto's age with long brown hair tied back into a ponytail and featureless white eyes with a bit of a lavender hint to them. He wore a beige-coloured shirt with a dull blue shirt underneath, dark brown shorts, blue shinobi sandals, and bandages wrapped around his right arm and right leg, and a black Konoha headband, under which was a smaller headband with two straps that framed the sides of his face.

"So, you're the one they're calling the Shinobi Who Overcame Time, the child of the Seventh Hokage from the future. Boruto Uzumaki, wasn't it?" asked the adolescent boy, his eyes seeming to pierce right through Boruto. "Neji Hyuga, son of Hizashi. Care to share where you learned the Gentle Fist style, when only those descended from the Hyuga Clan have the ability to master it?"

 _Ah, so this is my cousin Neji,_ thought Boruto before he spoke. "Is that what they're calling me? A bit flamboyant by my standards. Makes it sound like I had a choice in being thrown back in time. But, now that you say it, I actually kinda like it," said Boruto, closing his eyes with a smirk. "As for how I can use the Gentle Fist, I'll only say this. You have your tricks…"

Boruto's eyes flew open, the Jogan in his right eye active, causing Neji to take a few step back in shock and surprise.

"...and I have mine. See you around, Neji."

With that, Boruto took to the rooftops, leaving Neji standing there, wondering what exactly this Shinobi who hailed from the Hidden Leaf Village of the future and who could use the Gentle Fist technique really was.

…

Meanwhile, Naruto was taking a little stroll up the street, having been called the Academy because Lord Hokage and Iruka wanted to talk to him about his Ninja Identification photo. More specifically, they wanted him to retake it, even after all the hard work he'd put into the makeup he'd worn.

Naruto froze in his tracks at the sound of footsteps behind him. Turning around, Naruto saw that someone, more than likely that little kid he'd run into at the Academy, was following him, and from the looks of things, namely the way they'd bunched up their disguise so it resembled a giant serving of mashed potatoes instead of the ground, they weren't too good at hiding.

 _Who the Hell does that kid think he's fooling?_ thought Naruto, staring at the lousy disguise for a few moments before turning around and walking away.

The kid, who was a young boy wearing a yellow shirt with a red Konoha symbol on it, gray shorts, a blue scarf, blue Shinobi sandals, and a gray helmet that had a tuft of his brown hair sticking out of the top, emerged from his disguise and continued to follow Naruto. Before long, Naruto had had enough.

"I know that you're following me, so just give it up!" Naruto said as he turned around right as the boy tried to disguise himself as a false wall. However, the tops of the boy's hands and the tuft of hair were poking out from behind the disguise, causing Naruto to have a sort of deadpan expression on his face.

"That's so obvious, it's pathetic," said Naruto.

The boy chuckled and lowered his disguise, a smirk on his face. "Saw through my disguise, huh? The rumors about you are true, you're good!" he said before walking up to Naruto and pointing a finger at him. "All right! I'll be your apprentice and you'll be my trainer!"

"Euh?"

"And afterward, you gotta show me that Sexy Jutsu thing you did on Grandpa Hokage!"

"This is some kinda joke, isn't it?" asked Naruto, confused.

"No, I need a new trainer! Please, boss?" begged the boy.

"Huh? Boss?" said Naruto, confused as ever.

"Yeah! You're the boss! Boss, boss, boss!" said the boy.

Naruto chuckled. "Well, how can I refuse?"

…

 _Later that day…_

Naruto and his newfound apprentice, Konohamaru, were walking through the village streets.

"Listen. If you wanna be a master ninja, then believe it, you gotta learn to control your cattra," explained Naruto.

"Huh? Cattra? A cat?" said Konohamaru, confused.

"I said, your cattra," said Naruto, growing a touch irritated.

"Uh, boss? I think you're talking about chakra-"

"Don't question me! Real ninjas say cattra!" said Naruto angrily.

"No, they don't."

Naruto and Konohamaru looked in the direction the voice came from to see Boruto walking towards them, a smirk on his face.

"Hey, I know you! The whole village is talking about you! You're Burrito Uzumaki, the Shinobi Who Overcame Time!" said Konohamaru, looking up at Boruto with a huge grin on his face.

Boruto chuckled. "First off, it's Boruto, as in, a bolt. Secondly, yes, that's what they call me apparently. If I had to guess, I'd say you're Konohamaru Sarutobi," he said.

"Whoa! How'd you figure that out? I guess it's because of my grandfather, isn't it?" said Konohamaru.

"Well, that and you're my sensei where I'm from," said Boruto, smiling as he jerked his thumb over to Naruto, who was glaring daggers at his future son. "So, why are you hanging around this loser?"

"Well, he's my new trainer and I'm his apprentice," explained Konohamaru.

Boruto couldn't help but snigger at this news. "Is that so? Well, how about I tag along with you two? Make sure you don't get into any trouble?"

"Uh, no, no, no! We're just fine on our own, thanks! Come on, Konohamaru, I'm gonna teach you about cattra!" said Naruto as he tried to pull on his apprentice's arm.

Konohamaru pulled his arm out of Naruto's grasp and took the scroll that Boruto held out for him. "'Chakra is the elemental life energy that is used to perform jutsu,'" Konohamaru read aloud. "'The ninja arts combine physical energy from every cell in the body and mystical energy that is intensified through training and experience. When these two chakras mix, special hand signs allow the ninja to focus this energy for advanced jutsu.'"

"Know-it-all! You were just reading that thing Boruto handed to you! Where'd you even get that?!" yelled Naruto.

"I bought it. Thank God the currency is still the same in this time period," said Boruto.

"Yeah, whatever. You can blab all you want about ninja techniques, but there's only one thing that matters when it comes down to it," said Naruto.

"Yeah, what's that?" asked Konohamaru.

"Just plain hard work and guts."

"For once, he's right about that, even though that was technically two things. You'd better be able to walk the walk if you can talk the talk," said Boruto.

Konohamaru nodded eagerly. "All right, I'm with ya!" he said.

"Okay…" said Naruto. "I'm gonna throw some really big challenges at you now. Are you ready?"

"I'm ready, boss!" yelled Konohamaru.

"Good! Then let's do it! Show me a transformation!"

"Hmm?" asked Konohamaru.

"Believe it! Show me what you can do, and I'll take you to the next level!"

"Uh, right, sure, but what do I transform into?" asked Konohamaru.

"Uh… hmm…" said Naruto, looking around for inspiration before catching sight of a random woman. "Ah, right, you can transform into her!"

 _This cannot end well… I wish I had my phone on me to catch this on film,_ thought Boruto, smirking as he backed away.

"No problem, boss!" said Konohamaru before he performed the handsign. "Transform!"

In a puff of smoke, Konohamaru transformed into… a charicature of the the woman he was supposed to transform into.

"Well? Do I look like her?" asked Konohamaru.

Boruto broke into a huge shite-eating grin as Naruto stammered. "Well… the clothes kinda look like her…"

Unfortunately, the woman chose that very moment to pay attention to what was going on and shot Naruto and Konohamaru a look that would've end their lives almost instantaniously if looks could kill. "THAT LOOKS LIKE ME?!" she screeched as she decked Naruto a new one, causing Boruto to burst out in hysterical laughter and fall to the ground before the woman addressed Konohamaru. "Now, now, Honorable Grandson, next time you transform into me, make me a little cuter, okay? Ta!" the woman said before she carried on her merry way.

"She's… scary…" said Konohamaru.

"Ugh, you're the one who did it, why am I the one who gets whacked around?" said Naruto.

Boruto, meanwhile, pulled himself off the ground, his face shining with tears. "Too bad the internet doesn't exist yet. I could've gotten ten thousand likes on Mugscroll!" he said.

 **And thus concludes chapter three of this project of mine! Be sure to tune in next time, because we've got some more characters from Boruto's time period joining the crew! As far as the poll goes, right now Neji Hyuga is winning by a single vote! So, if you haven't voted yet, be sure to do so,** _ **would you kindly?**_


	4. Chapter Four

**Hello, internet! Welcome back to The Shinobi Who Overcame Time! Once again, this story has exceeded all expectations, so all the more reason to get back to work on it, eh? Also, as far as the poll goes, everybody wins! But, that doesn't come into play until later. Well, enjoy the show!**

 _Chapter Four: Reunited_

Kakashi stood waiting in the middle of the badlands, where he was supposed to meet Boruto Uzumaki for their sparring match at sundown. Except, now the moon was almost completely risen.

 _He's late. Really late. That's the kind of thing I do to other people,_ thought Kakashi as he started whistling.

Not even a moment later, Boruto casually strolled up. "Sorry I'm late. A black cat crossed my path, so I had to take the long way around," said Boruto with a cocky smirk.

"You tryin' to steal my schtick?" said Kakashi, his visible eye narrowed, although a smile was concealed under his mask.

Boruto chuckled as he removed his cloak and sword from his back and took a starting stance for the Gentle Fist style of taijutsu. "Of course not. But, now that I'm here, let's get started, shall we?"

Kakashi took a starting stance of his own before he spoke. "Yes. Let's."

A few moments of silence passed by as the wind whistled past the two Shinobi. Then, as though someone had spoken an unheard command, Boruto and Kakashi went at each other, delivering and avoiding blows so fast that anyone who happened to be watching would've only seen a blur of motion.

 _He's pretty good at using the Gentle Fist taijutsu, and that's a trick known only to the Hyuga Clan,_ thought Kakashi as he avoided a few more of Boruto's Gentle Fist strikes. _I wonder… could he be descended from the Hyuga Clan?_

Suddenly, Boruto's attacks seemed to decrease, then rapidly increase again, allowing him to score a couple solid hits on Kakashi, sending the legendary Shinobi to his knees.

"What… was that?" hissed Kakashi through clenched teeth.

Boruto laughed. "Oh, don't tell me the famous Copy Ninja hasn't heard of variable acceleration. See, Shinobi usually fight at the same pace, but if you switch it up, you can throw your opponent off his game and move in."

"Nice. You're teaching me that once we're done here."

"Absolutely," said Boruto as he formed his Rasengan "But, not today."

Boruto then threw his Rasengan, causing Kakashi to smirk as he performed his own hand signs. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" he said before he spat out a ball of fire that not only destroyed Boruto's Rasengan, but managed to score a direct hit on Boruto himself, sending him flying backwards.

As Boruto pulled himself back up again, he smirked and chuckled. "All right then. Time to pull out the big guns," he said, activating his Jogan and performing a series of hand signs that were all too familiar to Kakashi.

 _Where in the world did he learn the Chidori?_ thought Kakashi before he formed his own Rasengan. _Doesn't matter. I invented that technique, so I know how to stop it._

Boruto's Chidori appeared in his hand before he charged at Kakashi at breakneck speeds, just as Kakashi charged at Boruto with his Rasengan. When the two techniques collided, the resulting explosion sent both Kakashi and Boruto flying through the air before they both hit their heads on rocks, rendering themselves unconscious.

…

By the time both Boruto and Kakashi regained consciousness, it was nearly sunrise. So, the two of them sat there and talked while waiting for the sunrise.

"So, I can safely say that you know how to hold your own in a fight. But, where did you learn the Chidori?" asked Kakashi.

"From Sasuke Uchiha. He learned it from you. Or, at least, he will, one day," explained Boruto.

"Hmm," said Kakashi, looking downcast, something Boruto quickly picked up on.

"You feel guilty about what happened to the Uchiha Clan, don't you? What happened with, what was his name… Itchy something…" said Boruto.

"Itachi," said Kakashi.

"Yeah, him. Truth be told, I wouldn't blame yourself for it. Something tells me there's more to the Uchiha Clan Massacre than people realize."

"What do you mean?" asked Kakashi.

"Well, think about it. No one just wakes up one morning and says 'I'm gonna wipe out my entire clan just because I can!' I mean, come on, there has to be more going on, don't you think?" said Boruto. "In any case, we should really get back to the village. Don't want to miss the orientation, now do we?"

…

As the sun began to rise higher into the sky and Boruto made his way back to his father's apartment, the teenage Shinobi caught sight of something that he recognized almost instantly: a shimmering vortex very much like the one that had brought him into this time period. A small pang of fear coursed through him at the sight.

 _I'd better check that thing out. If Kawaki's followed me here, then there's no telling what could happen to the timeline,_ thought Boruto as he altered his course to investigate the vortex and face whatever came out of it.

What he got, however, was a major surprise.

Three people emerged from the vortex, a boy and two girls, all three of them around his age. The boy had bluish-white hair, a pale complexion, and wore a two-toned light and dark blue jacket with a white shirt underneath, a scratched Konoha forehead protector, a thick khaki-grey Ono-stylized belt, a pair of navy pants, black long fingerless gloves, black calf-length shinobi sandals, and a pair of twin swords on his back.

One of the girls had shoulder-length black hair and wore a pair of damaged glasses, a red sleeveless qipao shirt with the Uchiha crest on the back, a pair of lilac-colored shorts, dark purple thigh-length stockings, black shinobi sandals, long dark purple arm warmers, and a tattered black cloak that had once belonged to her father, and a red scratched Konoha headband.

The third girl, and the one to whose aid Boruto rushed, had long purple hair, soft violet eyes, and wore a white cloak with a purple sleeveless halter neck shirt underneath that exposed a red tattoo of some kind on her back, a light pink sash around her waist and dark pants with a shuriken holster around her right thigh, and long fingerless black gloves. She also had bandages wrapped around her wrists and her long black shinobi sandals and a purple scratched Konoha headband.

"Sumi? Sumire-Chan, wake up!" said Boruto as tear began pouring down his eyes at the sight of his one true love.

Sumire slowly opened her eyes and looked up at Boruto, tears of her own forming as she looked up at Boruto. "Boruto-Kun…?" she whispered.

The couple then locked lips with intense passion , only pausing to catch their breath.

"I thought I'd never see you again," said Boruto in between kisses.

"Feeling's mutual," replied Sumire.

"Uh, if you two are done recreating _Makeout Paradise_ , then I'd be pretty interested in finding out where and when we are exactly," said the black haired girl, Sarada Uchiha.

"Yes, I'd rather like to know that was well," said the boy, Mitsuki.

Boruto and Sumire broke apart, both of them beet red from embarrassment. "Right," said Boruto. "First off, we need to get you guys over to meet the Third Hokage and introduce yourselves. I'll explain everything along the way."

 **And thus concludes Chapter 4! Sorry about the shorter chapter, but this feels like a good place to end it off. Be sure to stay tuned for next chapter, where Sasuke learns the edited version of what really happened the night Itachi slaughtered the Uchiha Clan. Or, at least, most of it. See you then!**


	5. Chapter Five

**Hello, internet! Welcome back to my pride and joy, The Shinobi Who Overcame Time! Now, I've been pretty busy figuring out how much I want to cover in this particular story and what I want to set aside for the sequels. And here's what I've come up with. This story will cover most of the original** _ **Naruto**_ **anime, meaning that I may skip an episode or two for the sake of convenience, while the sequel will cover** _ **Shippuden.**_ **Or at least, my version of it, because remember, there's gonna be several alterations to the timeline thanks to Boruto and his crew. Also, each of the movies will be its own separate story for the sake of convenience. As far as the** _ **Boruto**_ **arc goes, I'm not sure what I want to do there. Well, I've babbled for long enough, let's begin!**

 **UPDATE: Made a few adjustments to the chapter due to how easily certain upcoming battles would be won using the Kote, so I decided to edit it out. Also, people don't really seem to like reading about Naruto having the hots for Sakura, so I addressed that as well. Also, I took care of any typos.**

 _Chapter Five: Something You Need To Know_

"So, you three are also from Boruto's time period, then?" asked Lord Hokage as Boruto, Sumire, Sarada, and Mitsuki stood before his desk, having been just introduced by Boruto.

"Yes, Lord Third Hokage," said Sarada with a bow.

"All right, start talking, you three. I'm very, very happy to see all three of you, but how did you guys get here?" asked Boruto.

Sarada, Sumire, and Mitsuki looked at each other uncomfortably. "We… uh…" said Sumire.

"We went after you to help you fight Kawaki, but when we got there, we were too late. So, we tried to fight him ourselves." said Mitsuki.

"What?" said Boruto, an angry look crossing his face. "I thought I told you guys to look after Himawari and stay out of Konoha! Kawaki is my fight, not yours!"

"You're not the only one who lost someone they cared about in the attack! I want to kill Kawaki just as badly as you do! Hell, we all do! But, you can't do this alone, Boruto. Remember what your father said about teamwork," said Sarada.

Lord Hokage cleared his throat loudly. "Sorry to interrupt, but today is Genin Orientation Day at the Academy, so I'm a bit pressed for time."

"Right, you three stay here and talk to Lord Hokage about your living arrangements. I've got business to attend to at the Academy. We'll meet up later," said Boruto as he turned on his heel and walked towards the door.

"I'm coming with you," said Sarada as she got up followed Boruto out the door. "There's something I need to tell my father before it's too late."

…

Sasuke Uchiha opened his eyes as he lay there in his bed for a moment, staring up at the ceiling of his room as the sunrise drew higher, filling his room with dim light. He had shoulder-length black hair and onyx eyes. Today was the day he started working towards the one thing that had driven him ever since the day the Uchiha Clan was nearly wiped off the face of the Earth: hunting down his older brother, Itachi, the man who was responsible for his clan's destruction, and send him off to Hell.

Gathering himself up and donning a navy blue, short-sleeved shirt with a high collar, bearing the red and white crest of the Uchiha Clan on the back, white shorts, blue shinobi sandals, and a blue Konoha headband, Sasuke made his way past his exercise and training equipment and out into the dimly lit hallway. It was best that he be the first one to get to the Academy, lest he be swarmed by a bunch of kunoichi, all of them eager to gain his affections.

What nobody realized was that there was already a kunoichi he had feelings for. Her name was Sakura Haruno.

Yes, Sasuke Uchiha, the most eligible bachelor of his age, was in fact already off the market. Yet, Sasuke found himself unable to tell Sakura how he really felt about her, despite it being painfully obvious that she, like every other kunoichi in his class, had feelings for him, Truth was, Sasuke simply could not bring himself to tell Sakura how he felt about her and hate his brother at the same time. For that reason, if he ever wanted to settle down with Sakura or anyone else for that matter and have a family to begin rebuilding the Uchiha Clan, he needed to see his brother in his grave first, and to do that, he needed to get stronger, and to do that, he needed to focus on his training.

There was no time to go chasing after romance. At least, not yet. The best he could do was hope that no one else swept Sakura off her feet before he avenged his Clan and defeated his older brother.

…

At Naruto's apartment, Naruto, dressed in his pajamas, sat up in his bed and stretched, yawning loudly as he did so. After a moment, Naruto climbed out of bed and removed his sleeping cap before casting a glance at his calendar. Upon seeing today's date circled, Naruto broke into a huge grin before making himself some microwave ramen for breakfast.

"Today's the day," said Naruto as he opened the top of the ramen container. "So, let's chow down!"

…

A short time later, Naruto, clad in his normal attire with the exception of his goggles being replaced by his Konoha headband, was walking through the streets of the village with a broad smirk on his face, completely oblivious the false wall that had been crudely set up.

"YOU'RE MINE, NARUTO!" yelled Konohamaru as he dropped the false wall and made a move towards Naruto, only to trip over the false wall and fall flat on his face.

Naruto, completely confused, simply looked at his former apprentice as he lay upon the ground. "What're you doing, Konohamaru?" he finally asked after a moment or two.

"Oooh… that was a pretty slick move. That's why I respect you as a rival," said Konohamaru from the ground.

Naruto stood there for a moment, trying to figure out what exactly he did to cause Konohamaru to fall flat on his face. Coming up with nothing, Naruto simply said, "But I didn't do anything."

"All right," said Konohamaru as he pulled himself up off the ground and made a hand sign. "Now fight me fair and square!"

"Sorry, I have an orientation today."

"Orientation?" said Konohamaru, confused.

Naruto placed his hand on his headband. "Oh, yeah! As of today, I'm a ninja! Believe it!" he said, chuckling with excitement as Konohamaru looked disappointed.

…

Meanwhile, at the Haruno residence, a young girl with long pink hair with green eyes wearing a red qipao dress with slits along the sides accompanied by a zipper and white circular designs, and tight dark green bike shorts with a shuriken holster around her right thigh tying a blue Konoha headband around her hair like a hairband and umming merrily to herself. Once the hairband was tied, Sakura Haruno looked at her reflection in the mirror.

"Honey, it's time for you to get going!" called Mrs. Haruno from the ground floor.

Sakura growled in frustration before calling back down stairs, "I know, I'm on my way out now!"

" _Cha! Why do keep treating me like I'm a little kid, I'm a ninja now!"_ snarled what Sakura called "Inner Sakura," who seemed to be a completely different person from Sakura, but in truth was merely a manifestation of what Sakura was really feeling and would like to say.

Sakura got her blue shinobi sandals on, said good-bye to her parents, and began to make her way towards the Academy.

 _I'm not a little Academy student anymore. I'm Sakura Haruno, kunoichi in training,_ thought Sakura as she walked down the city streets.

"I'll see you guys later!" called another girl as she walked out her front door. She had platinum blonde hair tied into a ponytail that went down to her waist, and wore a purple high-collared blouse with a matching apron skirt, bandages on her abdomen and legs, and small hoop-earrings, with her Konoha headband wrapped around her waist as a belt.

When the two girls made eye contact with each other, they stared at one another for a moment, the exact same stone-cold gaze etched into their faces.

"Good morning, Sakura," the blonde girl said coldly.

"Good morning, Ino," replied Sakura just as coldy before the two kunoichi began walking side by side.

"So, they actually let you graduate? What a surprise," said Ino, a smirk on her face.

"Those classes are ancient history," Sakura said dismissively as she glared at Ino. "We're both ninja now, and we're both equal. I won't lose to you anymore."

With that, Sakura began to walk just a little faster than Ino, who then attempted to try to keep pace with Sakura. Before long, the two kunoichi were in a full on race against each other, with both girls desperate to get ahead of the other.

…

Meanwhile at the Academy, Naruto was sitting with his hands resting on his arms, still wearing a goofy grin that seemed to indicate that Christmas came early and he got everything he wanted.

A boy around his age wearing an expression that seemed to indicate that he really wished he wasn't here right now with black hair tied into a ponytail. He wore a short-sleeved grey jacket with green-edged sleeves and his clan's symbol on the back with a green-lined mesh armor T-shirt underneath, brown pants, silver hoop earrings, with his blue forehead protector around his left arm.

As he walked between the desks, the boy caught sight of Naruto. "Huh? What're you doing here, Naruto? This class isn't for dropouts, you can't be here unless you graduated,"

"Oh, yeah?Do you see this, do you see this? Open your eyes Shikamaru, it's a regulation headband! We're gonna be training together! How do ya like that?"

Shikamaru scoffed as Naruto continued. "Let me put it to you this way. I look great in this headgear, like it was made for me, believe it!"

Unbeknownst to Naruto, a girl around his age with featureless white eyes and dark blue hair in a short hime-cut kept just above her forehead with chin-length strands framing her face wearing a cream-colored hooded jacket with a fire symbol on the upper sleeves and fur around the cuffs and hem with her forehead protector hanging around her neck, brown pants, and brown shinobi sandals was watching him.

 _Naruto, you graduated after all. I'm glad,_ thought Hinata Hyuga, her cheeks beet red.

Meanwhile, there was a rush of footsteps outside in the hallway. A moment later, Sakura and Ino forced their way into the door at the same time.

"I'm first!" the two kunoichi proclaimed loudly before doubling over out of breath.

"I win again, Sakura!" said Ino.

"Give it up! I had to look back to see you, my toe was at least a tenth of an inch ahead!" replied Sakura.

"Have you always been this delusional?" asked Ino, causing Naruto to turn towards the door.

 _Sakura…_ thought Naruto, a goofy expression crossing his face as he turned beet red.

As Sakura turned towards Naruto, his expression turned even goofier as his blush deepened. _She's smiling at me. I think she likes me in this headband._

Sakura's eyes grew brighter and her smile grew wider as she rushed past Ino.

"Hey, whoa, where are you going?!" asked Ino as Sakura grew closer to Naruto's desk.

"Hey, Sakura, what's up?" Naruto asked before Sakura shoved him out of the way with a harsh "Move it!" so she could talk to Sasuke Uchiha, who happened to be sitting at the same desk as Naruto.

"Uh, good morning, Sasuke," said Sakura, causing Sasuke to turn and look at her, doing his best to maintain an annoyed expression.

"Mind if I sit next to you?" asked Sakura.

But, before Sasuke could tell her yes, Ino stormed up to her and grabbed her arm. "Back off, forehead, I'm sitting next to Sasuke!"

"I was here first!" said Sakura, clearly irratated.

"I walked into the classroom before you did, everybody saw it!"

"Dream on!"

"Actually, I got here before either of you," said a third kunoichi.

"So did I! I'm sitting next to Sasuke!"

"No, I am!"

As several kunoichi argued over who was sitting next to Sasuke, he allowed himself an amused smirk, albeit a barely detectable one.

 _Clueless,_ thought Sasuke.

As the kunoichi continued arguing, Naruto snapped out of the daze that he'd been in and glared daggers at Sasuke before jumping onto the desk to glare Sasuke in the eye. Sasuke of course, returned the glare.

"Naruto! Stop glaring at Sasuke!" yelled Sakura

Naruto glared at Sakura for a moment. _Sakura,_ thought Naruto, before returnng his glare to Sasuke. _Why are they so obsessed with him? Sasuke, Sasuke! What's the big deal with this guy?!_

As Naruto and Sasuke continued glaring at each other, the kunoichi could've sworn they saw bolts of electricity surge between Sasuke and Naruto's eyes, causing them to start yelling.

Meanwhile, one of the other students was getting a kick out of what was going on. "Aw, man, this is great!" he said, accidentally bumping Naruto. "Sorry, did I bump you?"

The kunoichi were all floored at the sight of what had happened because of the bump. "What the-?" said Sakura.

"I, uh…" said Ino at the sight of Naruto and Sasuke locking lips. Almost immediately, the two broke apart, coughing and spitting up as the kunoichi glared daggers at Naruto.

" _Cha! This is outrageous! I was supposed to be Sasuke's first kiss! Naruto will pay for this! Cha!"_ yelled Inner Sakura.

Meanwhile, the boy who accidentally bumped Naruto saw that the kunoichi looked VERY angry with Naruto. "They look vicious," he said, causing Naruto to stop coughing and gagging.

"Huh? Danger," said Naruto as he turned to look at the kunoichi, all of whom looked extremely murderous.

"Naruto, you are so dead!" said Sakura.

"Hey, whoa! It was an accident!" said Naruto defensively.

Sakura, along with some of the other, kunoichi, cracked their knuckles and got ready to beat the living daylights out of Naruto. "You're finished!" said Sakura.

"H-hold on…"

…

Meanwhile, Boruto was sitting on the windowsill of the classroom, watching as his father got the living shit kicked out of him by a bunch of girls, and fighting the urge to laugh his head of at the sight. While the class was distracted by the full-on slugfest that was going on, Boruto silently opened the window and climbed into the classroom.

"Ahem," Boruto said loudly, getting everyone's attention. "As much as I'd like nothing more than to watch all of you kick Naruto's ass from here to the Land of Waves, class has officially begun, so everyone get in your seats. Sakura, you can sit next to Sasuke," said Boruto.

"You're him, aren't you? The Shinobi Who Overcame Time, son of the Seventh Hokage?" said one of the kunoichi.

"Indeed I am, and I've been given the task of assigning you to your three-man squads, so sit down and shut up," said Boruto.

As one, the kunoichi sat down in their seats, with Sakura sitting between Sasuke and Naruto. As Hinata looked down at Boruto from her seat, she could help but shake the feeling that, somehow, some way, Boruto was the son she and Naruto would end up having one day. Perhaps it was her maternal instincts, or maybe her Byakugan, that allowed her to sense this connection.

 _I don't know how I know that The Shinobi Who Overcame Time is mine and Naruto's son, but still, it's nice to know that Naruto manages to achieve his dream, and we end up together,_ thought Hinata.

"As of today, you are all ninja. To get to this day, you've had to endure many trials and hardships," said Boruto, pacing up and down the front of the class. "However, what you've been through to this point will seem like a cakewalk compared to what lies ahead. Right now, you are only Genin, Level One ninjas. As I said before, each of you will be paired into three man squads, each led by either one or two Jonin, elite ninjas."

The class gasped aloud at this news. _A three man squad?_ they all thought.

"Well, someone's gotta be in Sasuke's group, I wonder who?" said Ino from behind Sakura.

"I don't know," said Sakura before she turned and glared at Ino.

" _Cha! I'm gonna be with Sasuke, so stay away from him, you hag!"_ snarled Inner Sakura.

 _Meh. Groups of three… that'll only slow me down,_ thought Sasuke.

 _I wanna be with Sakura, and, well… I don't care, as long as it's not Sasuke,_ thought Naruto.

"Apparently, the guys in charge want each squad to have a balance of strengths and abilities, so that's how they're set up. The squads are as follows," said Boruto, before he started reading off the names of the squads. However, Naruto didn't really take much interest in the squads.

"...and now, Squad 7. Naruto Uzumaki," said Boruto, causing Naruto to start paying attention. "Sakura Haruno…"

Sakura let out a gasp of shock as Naruto stood up.

"Yeah!" yelled Naruto.

"I'm doomed," said Sakura.

"And Sasuke-Sensei- I mean, Sasuke Uchiha!"

Now it was Naruto's turn to have a look of blank shock on his face as Sakura stood up and let out a victory cheer.

"I'm doomed," said Naruto.

 _Did he just call me "Sasuke-Sensei?"_ thought Sasuke, raising an eyebrow while otherwise maintaining his neutral expression.

Meanwhile, Hinata had a disappointed look on her face as she looked over at Naruto. _I won't be with Naruto, then…_ thought Hinata.

"All right, now for Squad 8! Mom- I mean, Hinata Hyuga. Good grief, can't read the writing on this thing," muttered Boruto.

Hinata snapped to attention. "Yes, sir," she said, feeling a little weird calling her future son "sir."

"Kiba Inuzuka," said Boruto as a boy with a large spiky hairdo and red markings under his eyes wearing a gray hooded jacket, brown pants with a shuriken holster, a Konoha headband, and blue shinobi sandals chuckled.

"And Shino-Sensei-I mean, Shino Aburame," said Boruto as a boy with a mop of dark brown hair wearing a Konoha headband, a cream-colored shirt, brown pants, black shinobi sandals, and dark sunglasses adjusted said sunglasses.

While Boruto listed off Squad 9's members, Sakura turned around and gave Ino a cocky peace sign and chuckled, causing Ino to growl angrily.

"How did you get in his group?!" Ino snarled at Sakura.

" _Ka-ching! True love conquers all!"_ said Inner Sakura as Ino growled in frustration.

"I don't get it," said Shikamaru, who happened to be sitting next to Ino. "What do you see in a guy like that? He's not so special."

"You are so beyond clueless, Shikamaru. Don't you get it?" said Ino.

Shikamaru cast an annoyed look at Ino. "No, I don't get it because I'm not a girl," he replied.

Ino gave an exasperated sigh. "You're so full of yourself. Jealousy's a terrible thing. I'd hate to be on your squad," she said.

 _You wished and made it so,_ thought Boruto before he cleared his throat. "And finally, Squad Ten. Ino Yamanaka. Shikamaru Nara," he said.

Ino gasped aloud while Shikamaru chuckled. "Heh, did you say something about hating to be on my squad?" asked Shikamaru with a cocky smirk, causing Ino to growl in frustration.

"And finally, Choji Akimichi," said Boruto as a pudgy young man with brown hair and little eyes wearing a green coat with a white shirt bearing an insignia on the bottom, athletic tape on his forearms and shins, and blue Shinobi sandals munched on the contents of a bag of food.

Ino let out an exasperated sigh and put her hands on her head. _Not food boy, too!_ she thought helplessly.

"And that's all the squads. Any questions?" asked Boruto.

"Yeah, I got one! Why does a great ninja like me have to be with someone like Sasuke?" asked Naruto.

"Well, apparently Sasuke got the best scores out of everyone in the class, whereas you on the other hand, pretty much bombed every single exam you were given, from what they tell me. And like I said, they wanted to have a balance of skills and abilities, so logically, to create a balanced team, they put the best student with the worst student," explained Boruto while Naruto growled in frustration.

"Just make sure you don't get in my way, loser," said Sasuke, causing Naruto to growl angrily.

"Hey, what did you say?!"

"Hard of hearing?" replied Sasuke.

"Naruto, knock it off, sit down!" yelled Sakura as the class, save for Hinata, laughed at Naruto.

"Ahem," said Boruto, commanding attention from the room once more. "After lunch today, you'll meet your new Jonin teachers. That reminds me, Sakura and Sasuke, I'd like you both to join me for lunch today. There's someone who'd very much like to meet you both. Until then, class dismissed."

…

A short time later, Boruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were walking down the village streets, heading towards one of the village's parks, filling Sasuke and Sakura in on the details of his past.

"So, you're Naruto's son?" asked Sakura.

"That means Naruto's the Seventh Hokage… dear God," said Sasuke, a worried look crossing his face.

"Relax, Sasuke-Sensei. Compared to the moron he is now, the Naruto of my time actually grows up quite a bit, both in stature and maturity. Although he's still an idiot," said Boruto.

Sasuke smirked. "So, I _did_ hear you call me Sensei," he said.

"Indeed. When we last met, in my time, I was but the learner, and now I am the master," said Boruto as he, Sakura, and Sasuke entered the park they were heading for.

 _That line sounds familiar… where have I heard it before?_ thought Sakura.

"So, who's supposed to be meeting us here?" asked Sasuke.

"She's right over there," said Boruto, pointing towards a corner bench.

Sarada got up and walked over to meet Boruto and her parents. "Hello, Mom. Dad," said Sarada, her Sharingan active to confirm her identity, causing Sakura and Sasuke to gasp aloud in shock.

 _She's my daughter?!_ _Mine and Sakura's?!_ thought Sasuke in shock. _But then that means…_

 _That means Sasuke and I… end up together! We get married!_ thought Sakura, before Inner Sakura broke into a huge grin and started skipping merrily around the area.

" _Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yesssssssss!"_ said Inner Sakura as she bounded around the area, while the real Sakura simply stood there with an odd expression on her face that caused Boruto, Sasuke, and Sarada to look at her with concerned expressions on their faces.

"You, uh, okay, Sakura?" asked Boruto.

"The wedding will take place in the springtime, when the cherry blossoms bloom…" said Sakura without a change in expression. "The bridesmaids will wear lavender…"

"I think she's had a bit of a shock. Nothing a little nap can't fix," said Boruto as he walked over to Sakura and rendered her unconscious by applying pressure to just the right spot on her neck, causing the kunoichi to drop like a bad habit. "Don't worry, she'll be up again in about fifteen minutes or so. Sarada, I hope you know what you're doing," said Boruto before he departed.

"Huh? What's he talking about?" asked Sasuke, turning to face Sarada, who had a very sullen look on her face.

"Father… there's something you need to know about the night Uncle Itachi destroyed the Uchiha Clan. Right now, you think Uncle Itachi killed the Clan in cold blood simply to test his power, right?" said Sarada. "But, that's not what really happened that night. You see, Uncle Itachi lied to you."

"Huh? What are you talking about?" asked Sasuke.

"Maybe I should start from the beginning. Does the name Yashiro Uchiha ring any bells?" asked Sarada.

"Not that I recall," said Sasuke.

"Well, from what I've learned, he manipulated your father and my grandfather into staging a coup d'etat, because of the Clan's unfair treatment following the attack of the Nine-Tailed Fox on the village. However, Uncle Itachi, despite being a pacifist by nature, learned that peace talks had failed between the Uchiha Clan and the village, he saw that the coup would only embroil the village in another bloody war, one that would more than likely see you dead. In the end, Uncle Itachi had no choice but to end the coup before it began, and to do that, he needed to destroy the Clan in order to save you."

"No… no, no, no, no, that's not possible! I would've heard something about a planned coup by my clan!" said Sasuke, holding his head in both physical and emotional pain as something inside him began to fight for freedom from the depths of his memories.

"There's more too. Uncle Itachi was so overcome by remorse for killing his Clan, that he painted himself as the villain, just to set you on the path of vengeance and kill him for his crimes. No matter what he's done or why he did it, there was only one person that he truly cared about and loved the most out of his entire clan: you. I'm sorry for hurting you like this, but… it's better you learned what really happened that night now than later, when it's too late," explained Sarada, who looked as though she were hurting someone she truly cared about, which of course, she was.

Finally, what was fighting for freedom from Sasuke's memories came to the surface. It was his initial attempt at vengeance with his newly awakened Sharingan, before he collapsed and passed out. But, not before getting a good look at Itachi's face. But, it wasn't the hate-filled glare of a cold-blooded killer.

It was the tear-soaked face of a man who had just destroyed and lost everything he ever cared about.

Then, once again, he heard his brother say the words that had haunted his dreams.

" _Foolish little brother… you can't kill me any more than I could kill you… your hatred isn't strong enough… you're not strong enough. Not yet, anyway. Not until you get a Mangekyo Sharingan like I have. Your life is too precious to me to take. So run. That's right… run away… and allow me to live with the shame…"_

As Sasuke pulled himself together, he turned to face his daughter, who had helped him set the stage to save his brother, rather than kill the man who saved his life.

"Thank you for telling me this. I never did get your name," said Sasuke.

"It's Sarada. Sarada Uchiha," said Sarada before she departed.

No sooner had she left, Sakura came to once again.

"Wha… what happened? Where's Boruto? Where's that girl who was here? The one who said she was our daughter?" asked Sakura.

Sasuke took a deep breath. Now that he knew the truth, it felt like it was time to take a major leap with his heart.

"I'm sorry, Sakura."

Sakura grew confused. "Sasuke, what're you talking about? What're you sorry for?"

"I'm sorry for not telling you how I really feel about you. At least, before now, anyway."

…

Unbeknownst to Sakura and Sasuke, who were talking about their feelings for one another, Naruto was hiding in the shadows along with Boruto, a devastated look on his face and a rumbling in his stomach, perhaps from the Nine-Tailed Fox or indigestion.

"I did tell you, Naruto. You were looking for love in all the wrong places," said Boruto.

"I know… but, I thought that since Sakura and I were on the same team, I might finally have a chance to get to know her, and maybe she'd start feeling the same way I felt about her," said Naruto, tears starting to form in his eyes.

"Naruto, it's like I told you. There's someone who's been watching you from the very beginning, like a little flower on the wall," said Boruto as he began to walk away.

"Can you tell me who it is?"

Boruto paused before looking over his shoulder at his father.

"If you look back, very, very carefully, you'd find that you already know."

 **And thus concludes Chapter Five! I'll be honest, I'm really happy that this story is doing so well, and honestly, I'm having fun with it, and it's been far too long since that happened. You know the drill by now, be sure to fave, follow, and review, and I'll see you guys next time for the beginning of the Land of Waves arc!**


	6. Chapter Six

**Hello, internet! Welcome back to The Shinobi Who Overcame Time! In case you missed it, I've edited the last chapter, getting rid of the Kote, kept the knowledge that Boruto's also Hinata's son hidden from Sasuke and Sakura, and had Naruto find out that Sasuke and Sakura are fated to be together, with Boruto aiming, albeit discreetly, Naruto towards Hinata. Also, while we're on the topic of Sakura and Sasuke, Sasuke having feelings for Sakura from the beginning, while truthfully I simply added it, is in fact one of the timeline disruptions caused by Boruto and his crew. Well, I've babbled long enough. Let's begin!**

 _Chapter Six: Journey To The Land of Waves_

Several days had past since Boruto, followed swiftly by his girlfriend, Sumire Kakei, and his old friends, Mitsuki and Sarada Uchiha, had arrived out of seemingly thin air. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were placed under the wings of Kakashi Hatake and Boruto himself, where they became the first students to pass Kakashi's test. Ever since then, Kakashi and Boruto had taken it in turns to train the Genin. However, both Naruto and Sasuke in particular were growing impatient with their current slew of uninteresting D-rank missions.

Such was the case when Team Seven received a mission to retrieve the pet cat of the wife of the Land of Fire's Daimyo…

…

" _Sasuke, I'm at point B,"_ said Sasuke's voice over Kakashi's headset.

" _Sakura, I'm at point C,"_ said Sakura.

A few moments later, Naruto's voice came in over the headset. " _Naruto, I'm at point A, believe it!"_

"You're slow, Naruto," said Kakashi, a touch of irritation in his voice. "Okay, Squad Seven… huh? The target has moved, follow it!"

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura followed the cat as silently and quickly as they could. Once they drew close to the target, the three genin hid themselves nearby.

"Over there!" whispered Naruto, pointing to some rustling bushes near their hidding spots.

" _What's your distance from the target?"_ Kakashi said over the headset.

"Five meters. I'm ready, just give the signal," said Naruto.

"I'm ready too," said Sasuke.

"So am I," said Sakura.

" _Okay… NOW!"_

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura leapt at the cat in an attempt to catch it. Naruto was able to wrap his arms around the cat, which started yowling very loudly.

"I got him, I got him!" yelled Naruto, turning the cat to face him, only for it to promptly start scratching him, while Sakura simply stood there and watched.

" _Can you verify ribbon on right ear?"_ asked Kakashi over the headset.

"Affirmative, we got a positive ID," said Sasuke into his headset.

" _Right. Lost pet 'Torra' captured. Mission accomplished,"_ said Kakashi.

Naruto activated the microphone on his headset. "CAN'T WE GET A BETTER MISSION THAN THIS?! I HATE CATS!" he yelled loudly, causing Kakashi to fall over from the noise going directly into his ear.

…

A short time later, Boruto, Kakashi, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were in the Ninja Academy, watching as the Daimyo's wife smothered Torra with her affections.

Naruto, who seemed to be strangely devoid of cat scratches, laughed loudly at the sight. "Stupid cat! That kitty deserves to be squashed!" he laughed.

"No wonder he ran away," said Sakura.

"Now, then…" said Lord Hokage as he read from a sheet of paper. "For Squad Seven's next mission we have several available tasks… among them, babysitting the Chief Counciler's three-year old, helping his wife to do the shopping, digging up potatoes, and-"

"No!" yelled Naruto. "I wanna go on a real mission! Something challenging and exciting, not this little kids' stuff! Come on, old man!"

 _He's got a point,_ thought Sasuke, nodding his head in agreement.

 _He's such a pain,_ thought Sakura.

Boruto walked up to Kakashi and cleared his throat. "Our bet?" he whispered.

Kakashi sighed. _I knew this was coming,_ he thought before he gave Boruto fifty ryo.

"How dare you!" snapped Iruka, who happened to be sitting nearby. "You're just a brand-new genin with no experience! Like everyone else, you start with simple missions to develop your skills and prove yourself!"

"Are you serious?! Babysitting is not a mission, it's just a stupid-!" yelled Naruto before Boruto punched him in the back of the head, knocking him to the ground.

 _Damn, I've been waiting to do that. I know I was a brat when I was Dad's age, with an inflated ego to go with it, but I don't think I was as big of a brat as Dad is now,_ thought Boruto before he spoke aloud, "Shut up! Being a ninja isn't all kicking ass and taking names, you know. Although, I gotta admit, a ninja babysitter is kinda overkill."

"Naruto!" said Lord Hokage as Naruto rubbed his head where Boruto had punched him while sitting on the ground, bawling. "It seems you do not understand the tasks you have been given."

Naruto stopped bawling and looked up at the Hokage, who began his explanation. "Listen, all kinds of requests come into our village every day, from babysitting to assassinations. These requests are carefully recorded, analyzed, then are ranked A, B, C, or D depending on their difficulty. We ninja are also ranked by ability, Kage at the top, then Jonin, Chunin, and Genin at the bottom. At the highest level, we select the missions and give them to the ninja who have the appropriate skills and abilities. And, if the mission is successful, we receive a fee that supports our village, and our work."

"Since you are untried Genin just starting down the Shinobi path, you are given D-level assignments, of course-hmm?" continued Lord Hokage, only to realize that nobody was paying attention.

"So, I had this kagetsu ramen yesterday, and I'm thinking kinesio ramen today-" said Naruto.

"Do you ever shut up about ramen?" asked Boruto.

"SILENCE!" yelled Lord Hokage, causing everyone to turn towards him.

"Oh, sorry," said Kakashi, rubbing his neck in embarrassment.

Naruto cried out in frustration. "You always lecture me like you're my grandfather or something!"

 _Welcome to my world,_ thought Boruto.

"But, I'm not the little brat who used to pull pranks all the time! I'm a ninja now, and I want a ninja mission! Hmph!" said Naruto, turning around and pouting.

 _I'm inclined to disagree, Dad. You may be a ninja now, but you're an even bigger brat than I was at your age. Although, you don't seem to have an inflated ego like I did… yet,_ thought Boruto.

Kakashi sighed. "We're gonna hear about this later, Boruto," he said, before noticing that Boruto was chuckling and had a smirk on his face, something that was shared by both Lord Hokage and Iruka.

"Naruto wants us to know that he's not a brat. He's a former brat, and he wants a mission. So be it," said Lord Hokage.

This got not only Naruto's attention, but Sasuke and Sakura's attention as well, causing them to look at the Hokage. Boruto stood at attention, waiting to hear the instructions.

"Since you are so determined, I'm going to give you a C-ranked mission. Boruto and the three of you will be bodyguards on a journey to a distant land. Kakashi, I have a different mission for you, but I'd rather we not discuss it here," said Lord Hokage.

"Really? YES!" yelled Naruto, turning to face the Hokage with an eager look on his face. "Who? Who? Are we guarding a princess? Or some important counciler?!"

"Don't be so impatient. I will bring him in now. Send in our visitor," called Lord Hokage, causing Team Seven to look behind them as the door opened.

"What the-? A bunch of little snot-nosed kids?" said a middle-aged man with gray hair, a gray beard as he drank Saki directly out of the bottle. He wore a brown tunic with a purple sash tied around his waist, khaki shorts, brown sandals, glasses, had what seemed to be a string of some kind around his head, a white towel around the back of his neck, and had a large pack on his back. "And you, the little one with the idiotic look on your face, you really expect me to believe you're a ninja?"

Naruto laughed. "Who's the little one with idiotic look on his-" he said, before realizing that both Sasuke and Sakura were both taller than he was.

 _Uh-oh,_ thought Boruto, grabbing his father by the back of his jacket to keep him from attacking the client. "Naruto, you can't demolish the client, it doesn't work like that," Boruto said aloud as Naruto yelled loudly at the old man.

The old man, meanwhile, finished his Saki with a satisfied sigh. "I am Tasuna, a master bridge builder, and I must return to my country. I'm building a bridge there that will change our world, and I expect you to get me there safely, even if it means giving up your life," said Tasuna.

…

Meanwhile, a pair of ninja were dashing through the forest and treetops in a merciless hunt for the man their employer had hired them to eliminate in exchange for a big payday.

The man the ninjas hunted was named Tasuna.

…

Meanwhile, Boruto, Tasuna, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were passing through the village gates. Once the groups was on the other side of the gates, Naruto turned around and yelled "Yeeeeeaaaaah! All right!"

"What're you getting so excited about, Naruto?" asked Sakura.

"This is the first time I ever left the village! I'm a traveller now, believe it!" said Naruto as he looked from side to side, laughing with glee.

"Hey!" said Tasuna, who was now wearing a sunhat on his head. "Am I supposed to trust my life to this runt? He's a joke!"

Boruto chuckled. "He's with me and I'm a Jonin, so you have nothing to worry about."

However, what Tasuna had said pushed Naruto's buttons big time. _This runt is a joke! This runt is a joke!_ echoed Tasuna's voice in Naruto's head.

 _Why'd we have to get this old geezer to guard? I'm gonna cut him down to size right now!_ thought Naruto before turning around to face Tasuna. "Hey! Never insult a ninja, it's a big mistake! And I'm one of the greatest ninja ever! Someday I'm gonna be Hokage, get married, have a son, and you'll look up to me! My name's Naruto Uzumaki! Remember it!" he yelled.

Tasuna took a swig from a bottle of Saki. "Hokage are powerful and wise, you are puny and brainless. The day you become Hokage, I'll sprout wings and fly."

Naruto cried out in anger. "Shut up! I know I'm gonna be Hokage one day, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get there! And when I do then everyone will have to admit that I'm the top ninja, including you!" he yelled.

"Hmph. You can become Hokage ten times over and to me, you'll still be nobody, a loser," said Tasuna.

Boruto, sensing danger, moved over and grabbed Naruto by the back of his back to stop him from attacking Tasuna, willing him not to say anything stupid. "Naruto, I told you, you're supposed to _protect_ the client, not beat the tar out of him. In any case, to become old and wise, we must first be young and stupid. That was a saying that my father always used to use."

"Hmph, your father sounds like a very wise man," said Tasuna before he continued walking.

Unbeknownst to the group, however, they were being watched from the treetops…

…

As the group continued walking, something occurred to Sakura. "Say, Mr. Tasuna…" she said.

"What is it?" asked Tasuna.

"Your country is the Land of Waves, right?"

"Yeah. What of it?"

Sakura turned to look at Boruto. "Boruto-Sensei, there are ninja in that country too, aren't there?"

"Not that I'm aware of," said Boruto. "The Land of Waves, being a small island nation, has natural protection from the sea, so there isn't really a need for a Shinobi village. Although, you're not wrong in think there are other Shinobi villages out there, each with its own customs and cultures. See, the existence of Shinobi villages means military strength to the nations of this continent. Shinobi are how these nations defend themselves and maintain the balance of power. Villages like Konoha aren't controlled by any government, but rather are independant, and have equal status. The five ancient lands that have Shinobi villages are the lands of Fire, Water, Lightning, Wind, and Earth. Each of them occupy vast territories, and together, they are known as the Five Great Shinobi Nations. The Land of Fire has the Village Hidden In The Leaves, the Land of Water has the Village Hidden In The Mist, the Land of Lightning has the Village Hidden In The Clouds, the Land of Wind has the Village Hidden In The Sand, and the Land of Earth has the Village Hidden In The Stones. Only the leaders of these Hidden Villages are permitted the name Kage, or Shadow. Hokage, Kazekage, Raikage, Mizukage, and Tsuchikage are the five Shadows that reign over thousands of ninja."

Sakura let out an excited gasp. "Then Lord Hokage is really important!" she said.

" _Hmph. Give me a break. Is that old man really such a big deal? Naruto of all people is gonna end up Hokage one day, so I'm not buying it!"_ said Inner Sakura.

Naruto, for his part, recalled the day when Lord Hokage and Iruka had called him to the Academy, and he'd performed the Sexy Jutsu, causing Lord Hokage to shoot a jet of blood out of his nose and fall out of his chair.

 _I got him with my Sexy Jutsu. He can't be that great. Hmm,_ thought Naruto.

"Why do I get the feeling you two just doubt Lord Hokage's power?" asked Boruto, his voice turning stern.

Both Naruto and Sakura stammered for a moment before shaking their heads fervently, causing Boruto to laugh.

"Well, just remember, when it comes to the Kage, authority equals asskicking. In any case, there usually aren't any ninja battles in a C-ranked mission, so you guys can take it easy," said Boruto.

"So, we're not gonna run into any foreign enemy ninja or anything like that," said Sakura.

Boruto chuckled. "Probably not."

However, both Naruto and Sasuke noticed a rather nervous look on Tasuna's face, which made them both think there was more going on than he'd let on.

…

As the journey progressed, the group crossed over a fallen log that had been turned into a small bridge. As they journeyed further, Boruto spotted a small puddle nearby, which rang all sorts of alarms.

 _We got company,_ thought Boruto, discreetly making hand signs for a particular jutsu.

Sure enough, a moment later, two ninjas emerged out of the puddle, both of them connected by a spiked chain attached to their poison-tipped claws. One of the ninja lept into the air, the rattling of their chain catching Boruto and the group's attention.

"What the-" said Boruto before he found himself bound by the two ninjas' chain, unable to move as the rest of the group gasped in shock and surprise.

"Do it!" said one of the ninja.

The two ninjas then pulled on their chain, and thus pulled Boruto apart, sending what was left of him flying through the air, landing on the ground in a bloody heap.

Sakura screamed in terror, while Naruto simply remained silent and paralyzed with terror, as would any one who just saw their future son get torn to pieces right before their eyes. Naruto then felt a sudden, desperate urge to use the toilet when he heard the sinister laughter of the two ninja directly behind him.

"Now, it's your turn!" said one of the ninja, before they attempted to wrap Naruto up with their chain as well. Naruto simply stood there, still paralyzed with fear.

Sasuke, however, was able to gain control over his emotions and lept into action, pulling and tossing a shuriken at the two ninjas chain, pinning it against a tree trunk, before following up with a kunai that landed directly in the center of the shuriken, pinning the chain in place and preventing the ninja from moving.

"Eurgh! I can't get loose!" one of the ninja said, before Sasuke landed directly on their gauntlets, kicked them in the face, and leap frogged over them.

Unfortunately, the chain broke off from both ninjas gauntlets, allowing them to break free. One of them knocked down Naruto before joining his partner in going after the bridgebuilder.

Sakura was in somewhat of a panic as the ninja charged at the bridgebuilder. _I've got to stop them, I've got to stop them!_ thought Sakura as she got in front of Tasuna and pulled out a kunai knife. "Stay behind me!"

Sasuke, sensing that his new girlfriend was in trouble, quickly placed himself between the charging ninja and Sakura. "It's okay, Sakura-Chan! I got you covered!" he said.

"Actually, I have you covered!"

The next moment, both ninja were sent flying through the air by unseen chakra blasts and were rendered unconscious. Standing to the side, with his arms in a position that indicated that he'd just thrown something, was none other than Boruto.

"'Sup?" said Boruto as he walked up to join the group.

 _Boruto! He's alive!_ thought Sakura happily.

 _Hmph. Show-off,_ thought Sasuke.

Naruto, for his part, couldn't believe his eyes. "But, he was-!" he started to say, looking over where Boruto's pieces had supposedly landed, only to find several tree trunks instead.

 _Boruto… used the Replacement Jutsu!_ thought Naruto as Boruto dragged the unconcious attackers away.

"Oh, Naruto," said Boruto, looking back at his father. "I'm sorry I didn't help right away. I didn't mean for you to get hurt, but I really didn't expect you to freeze up like that."

Tasuna breathed a sigh of relief. _They saved me after all…_ he thought.

"All right, Sasuke, you did a good job, very smooth. You too, Sakura," said Boruto as he passed by them.

Naruto looked up in shock at Boruto's words. _I was useless!_ he thought. _And Sasuke was so cool! Like he'd done this a thousand times! Didn't he feel scared at all? He looks so calm, not a scratch on him! And I was so lame! He had to come up and save me! Ugh, why can't I keep up with them?_

"Hey," said Sasuke, turning to face Naruto.

"Yeah?" said Naruto.

"You're not hurt, are you? Scaredy-cat," said Sasuke with an arrogant smirk.

Naruto flinched as though Sasuke had hit him, before growling in anger. "SASUKE!" Naruto yelled before Boruto's voice reached him.

"Naruto! I know it's really difficult for you, but hold still! These ninja have poison in their claws. We need to take it out of you quickly."

Naruto went from angry to scared within a matter of seconds as he looked at the scratch on his hand.

"You'll need to open the wound and drain your blood to remove it. Don't move around too much, or the poison will spread," said Boruto. "Oh, and by the way Mister Tasuna."

"Yeah, what?" said Tasuna.

"You and I need to have a little chat."

…

A few moments later, the attacking ninja were awake and bound tightly to a tree as Boruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Tasuna stood before them.

"These guys are called the Demon Brothers. They're Chunin from the Village Hidden in the Mist. Their specialty is relentless attack. They'll keep fighting until either they or their target is dead," explained Boruto.

"How did you know about our ambush?" one of the Demon Brothers asked.

"Seriously? A puddle. On a clear day. When it hasn't rained in weeks. I know water is your thing and all, but who did you think you were fooling?" said Boruto.

"Told you it wouldn't work," the other Demon Brother said.

"In that case, why'd you leave it for the Genin to do the fighting?" asked Tasuna.

"True, I could've taken them out quickly, but then I'd have learned nothing. I needed to know if we'd simply run afoul of enemy ninja, or if they were hired to assassinate you. Care to know which one I'm thinking?" asked Boruto, glaring at Tasuna.

"Hmm? What're you getting at?" asked Tasuna.

"Let me put it this way. When you put in your request, you asked for standard protection from robbers and highwaymen. You didn't say anything about there being ninja hunting you down. If we'd known this, it'd probably have been an A or B-ranked mission. Our task was to get you back home and keep guard while you finished building your bridge. If we'd known we'd be feilding attacks from enemy ninja, we'd have staffed differently and charged for the cost of an A or B mission. I'm sure you have your reasons, but lying to ninja is never a smart move. Thanks to you, we're now beyond the scope of this mission."

"We're Genin, this is too advanced for our level of training. We should go back. And I really think we need to treat Naruto's wound and get the poison out as soon as possible. Back in our village, we can take him to a doctor," said Sakura.

 _Too bad you don't know any medical jutsu… yet. That'd fix him up pretty decent,_ thought Boruto before he spoke aloud. "Naruto's hand could become an issue… Sakura's right, we need to go back."

Naruto, having caught wind of the discussion despite simply standing around staring at his poisoned hand, grew an angry look on his face before pulling out a kunai knife and driving it deep into his poisoned hand, catching everyone present by surprise as blood went flying and Naruto started whimpering and groaning in pain before turning away from the group.

"Why am I so different?!" growled Naruto. "Why am I always… rrrraugh!"

"Naruto! Stop that, what're you doing?" said Sakura as she started forward.

"I worked so hard to get here! Pushing myself until it hurt! Training alone for hours, doing anything to get stronger, to reach my dream! I will never back down again, and let someone else rescue me. I will never run away. Sasuke may have beaten me to Sakura, but that's all he's gonna beat me at from here on out! Upon this wound, I make this pledge, believe it! Bridgebuilder, I'll complete this mission and protect you with this kunai knife," said Naruto before turning back towards the group with as much of a smirk as he could muster.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine!"

"Eh, Naruto, while I admit, that was pretty badass the way you took the poison out and made that speech, but if you lose any more blood, we're both goners," said Boruto.

As Naruto turned began shaking and sweating with fear, Tasuna looked at Boruto, confused. "What're you talking about?" he asked, before apparently noticing Boruto's resemblance to Naruto. "Say, are you two brothers or something?"

"Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey stuff," said Boruto dismissively. "But, seriously, it would be awesome if you took out that kunai knife and stop the bleeding. Like, right freaking now."

Naruto cried out in terror before running back and forth in a full-blown panic. "I'M TOO YOUNG TO HAVE IT ALL END LIKE THIS! NO, NO, NO!" screamed Naruto at the top of his lungs.

"Just show me your hand," said Boruto bending down to face Naruto.

"Naruto! You have a self-abusive personality! It's called massicism!" scolded Sakura.

As Bouto looked down at Naruto's hand, he realized that the injury was already starting to heal.

 _Ah, yes, I'd forgotten about the superhuman healing factor that Dad has from being Kurama's jinchuuriki,_ thought Boruto as the stab wound healed while sizzling with what looked like the smallest traces of steam.

"Um…" said Naruto as he trembled with fear, causing Boruto to look up. "Um, you have a really serious look on your face, you're scaring me, am I okay?"

"Uh, yeah, you'll be fine," said Boruto as he wrapped a bandage around Naruto's hand.

…

Meanwhile, in a cozy little hideout very deep in the forest, a very short man with a goofy hairstyle wearing a black business suit and sunglasses was in a rage.

"You failed?" said Gato. "YOU FAILED?! What is this, Amateur Night? I put out big money for you! I thought you were supposed to be hot-shot assassins!"

"Stop whining," said the man who lived in the hideout as he lifted the giant sword off of his shoulder and pointed it at Gato. He had short brown hair and wore a Hidden Mist Village forehead protector, a white face mask, a scabbard for his weapon, the straps for which were across his bare chest, black and white camouflage arm warmers with matching Shinobi sandals, and gray pants. "I'll go personally. And this sword will be the last thing he ever sees."

Gato cleared his throat, apparently a little nervous. "You sure about that? Apparently Tasuna has a high-level ninja guarding him. And since your first attempt failed, they'll be expecting you back. They'll be waiting, watching. It'll take someone with very advanced skills!"

"Who do you think you're dealing with? I... am Zabuza Momochi, the Demon of the Hidden Mist!"

 **And thus concludes Chapter Six! I know, it was a pretty lackluster chapter, given the excessive amounts of canon I used, but trust me, the next one will be leaps and bounds better! For one thing, we got Boruto going up against Zabuza with his Jogan and unique skills, which Kakashi doesn't have, I might add. So, if you'd be so kind as to fave, follow, and review, that'd be great, and I'll see you guys next time!**


	7. Chapter Seven

**Hello, internet! Welcome back to The Shinobi Who Overcame Time! And trust me when I say we're gonna have some fun with this chapter, mostly because it features Boruto being a bigger badass than ever before, as he's gonna go toe-to-toe with Zabuza Momochi, the Demon of the Hidden Mist. Before I forget, I'd like to go over something that has apparently irked a couple of people: my use of canon. Look, I'm not gonna lie, there will still be a lot of canon events and episodes in this story, this chapter included, the reason being that I'm worried that if I alter too much, I'll run the risk of diminishing Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and the other genin of this era's progress as ninja, and then I'll catch even more Hell for that. Thank you, Novikov Principal of Self-Consistancy! Don't know what that is? Well, that's why they invented the internet. However, that being said, wherever I can I will do my best to alter the timeline or show something off screen where I can, and it'll be the Chunin preliminaries where things will really start getting interesting, thanks to what happens to Hinata. Unfortunately, I can't do much outside the canon until Hinata nearly dies by Neji's hand. However, I have great pleasure in formally announcing my develpement of a new Anbu Boruto project entitled** _ **The Hokage's Hand.**_ **With that being said, let's get this party started!**

 **UPDATE: So, seeing as a pretty much just copy and pasted most of the episodes, as a few people have pointed out, I scrapped the original version of this chapter in favor of tinkering around with it a little bit more, to make it more original. Look, I'm just trying not to diminish Naruto and company's progress as ninja, because, as I said earlier, I'm worried I'll get even more complaints about that. This isn't just Boruto's story, you know, it's Naruto's as well, the story of how he got to where he is now, the Seventh Hokage. So, while I'll still be using lots and lots of canon, I'll be doing what I can to alter it how I can, and I may end up enlisting some outside help as well in order to ensure that.**

 _Chapter Seven: Boruto Uzumaki: Jogan Warrior_

Boruto and his group made their way across the ocean, having commissioned a man to take them from the mainland to the Land of Waves. Fortunately, there was a thick fog rolling in, which would help them conceal their movements while they rowed to their destination. As they rowed, Boruto filled Tasuna in on his circumstances.

"So, yeah, I'd invest in some flying lessons," said Boruto.

"So, time traveler, huh?" said Tasuna, chuckling. "If I didn't know better, I'd say that's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard in my life. Good thing I know better, though."

"I'd be inclined to disagree, given you thought it was a good idea to me and my fellow ninja about what was really going on," said Boruto sternly.

Meanwhile, the man who was taking them to Land of Waves spoke up. "The bridge isn't far now. Our destination is just ahead, the Land of Waves."

"Hmm?" said Naruto, peering into the distance as, slowly but surely, a massive, clearly unfinished bridge came into sight. When it was fully visible through the mist, Naruto broke into a huge grin. "WHOA! IT'S HUGE!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

"That's what she said," said Boruto with a snarky grin, earning him unamused glares from nearly everyone in the boat, especially Sakura. "What?"

"Wha- Quiet! I told you, no noise! Why do you think we're traveling like this? Cutting off the engine and rowing? Moving through the dense fog? So they don't see us!" scolding the man rowing the boat.

Several tense moments passed by before Boruto spoke again. "Now, then Mr. Tasuna. Before we reach the coast, there's something I would very much like to know. Why are the people who hired these ninja so desperate to kill you? If you don't tell me why, I'll have no choice but to scrub the mission when we arrive. You aren't getting a refund by the way," said Boruto, the utmost seriousness in his voice.

A few moments passed by as Tasuna thought about what he was going to say, with his head hung low. Finally, he spoke. "I have no choice but to tell you… no, I _want_ you to know the truth. Like you said, this is beyond the scope of the original mission," the old man said before he began his explanation. "The one who seeks my life is a very short man who casts a very long and deadly shadow."

"A deadly shadow... sounds interesting enough. Whose feet is this shadow attached to?" asked Boruto.

"You know him. At least, I'm sure you've heard his name before. He's one of the wealthiest men in the world: the shipping magnet, Gato."

"Gato… he runs Gato Shipping, right? Everyone knows who he is, myself, my friends, and girlfriend included, what with him being such a powerful tycoon in this era and all," said Boruto.

"Huh? Girlfriend? You have a girlfriend? Here? In my time? How come I haven't met her yet?" asked Naruto.

"I haven't gotten around to it, so shut up," said Boruto, motioning for Tasuna to continue.

"Gato is a very powerful tycoon from a famous company, that's true. But, below the surface, with the same ruthless methods he uses to take over businesses and nations, he sells drugs and contraband, using gangs and ninja," explained Tasuna. "It was one year ago when Gato first set his sight on the Land of Waves. He came to our island and used his vast wealth to take total control of our transport and shipping. Anyone who stood in his way simply… vanished. In an island nation, a man who controls the sea controls everything. Finance, government, our very lives. But, there's one thing he fears: the bridge. When it is complete, it will join us to the land and that will break his control. And I am the bridge builder."

After a moment's silence, Sakura spoke. "So that's it. Since you're in charge of the bridge, you're standing in this gangster's way," she said, her hand placed on her chin in thought.

"That means, those guys we fought in the forest, they were working for Gato," said Sasuke.

"I don't get it. If you knew this piece of filth was that dangerous, and you knew he'd send ninja after you, why'd you keep a lid on that?" asked Boruto.

"Because the Land of Waves is a small, impoverished nation. Even our nobles have little money. The common people who are building this bridge… they can't pay for an A or B-ranked mission. If you end the mission when you drop me ashore, there will be no bridge. They'll assassinate me before I reach home. But, don't feel bad about that. Of course, my sweet little grandson will be upset, he'll cry, 'Grandad, I want my Grandad, I want my Grandad!'" said Tasuna as he imitated a little boy, causing Boruto, Naruto, and Sakura to start feeling uncomfortable, while Sasuke looked as though he couldn't care less. "Oh, and my daughter will condemn the ninja of the Hidden Leaves, denouncing and blaming you for abandoning her father and living her life in sorrow," he continued, causing everyone present, save for Sasuke, to feel even worse. "Oh well, it's not your fault, forget it!"

"Well then, in that case, we'll simply have to keep guarding you. Truth be told, I kinda wanna punt Gato off the side of the bridge," said Boruto.

Tasuna breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, I'm very grateful," Tasuna said. However, once everyone was turned away, the old man smirked.

"I win," he said under his breath.

…

A short while later, Boruto, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Tasuna were walking through a forest path leading to the main settlement, keeping an eye out for any sign of trouble.

 _Odds are the next ninja Gato sends after the bridge builder won't just be chunin. They'll probably be jonin, elite ninja with deadly skills, like me,_ thought Boruto as he kept his eyes open. _Too bad Kakashi's busy with his own mission from the Hokage. If there were two of us, this would be a lot easier._

Up ahead, Naruto and Sasuke walked beside one another, Naruto glaring daggers at him the whole way.

 _Grr! I'm not letting Sasuke get all the glory this time! Believe it!_ thought Naruto. A second later, he heard something, or at least thought he did, so he darted ahead and started looking around for where the noise came from as he pulled out a kunai knife.

"Over there!" said Naruto before he threw the kunai knife in the direction the noise came from, catching everyone present by surprise and alarm.

When the noise stopped, Naruto shrugged. "It was just a mouse," he said.

"MOUSE?! YEAH, RIGHT, EVERYONE CAN SEE THROUGH YOUR STUPID ACT, YOU'RE SO OBVIOUS, IT'S EMBARRASSING!" scolded Sakura.

"Naruto, you idiot! Those are kunai knives! They're dangerous, you don't just throw them around like that, what if you hit some old lady, or kid, or tramp, or something that means no one any harm?" Boruto said sternly.

Tasuna, meanwhile, had had just about enough of Naruto's inherent stupidity. "STOP TRYING TO SCARE ME, YOU STUPID LITTLE DWARF!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs.

Naruto, meanwhile, heard another noise, the cause of which he began desperately trying to locate. "Hey, is someone hiding over there? No, they're over there!" he said, looking wildly around.

Boruto suddenly sensed a chakra presence a mere second before Naruto threw a second kunai knife.

"Over there!" said Naruto as the knife left his hand and went soaring through the woods.

"THAT'S IT, NARUTO!" yelled Sakura as she decked Naruto over the head.

"Wha-what'd you do that for?! Someone really is following us, I mean it!" said Naruto as his future son followed the trajectory the kunai knife traveled.

"YEAH, RIGHT! QUIT LYING AND ACTING LIKE A DUMB KID!"

"Not entirely sure he's acting, but I found the knife! Naruto really was hearing something moving around!" called Boruto.

Following Boruto's voice, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Tasuna found that the kunai had landed directly above the head of a clearly traumatized white rabbit.

"NARUTO! LOOK WHAT YOU DID!" scolded Sakura.

"Wha! A bunny! Ahh!" exclaimed Naruto as he ran over to the rabbit and hugged it. "I'm so sorry little bunny, I'm sorry!"

Tasuna sighed. "All this fuss over a rodent?" he said, his voice bearing a smidge of irritation.

"I don't think so. Take a closer look at the rabbit," said Boruto.

Sakura and Sasuke looked at the rabbit. "That's a snow rabbit, but its fur…" said Sakura.

"It shouldn't have white fur this time of year. They only have white fur in the winter, when the days are short and there's little sunlight," added Sasuke.

"Exactly. That rabbit was raised indoors away from the light. There's only one reason for that: Substitution," said Boruto.

Sakura and Sasuke looked confused. "Substitution?" asked Sakura.

"Oh, in my time we call the Replacement Jutsu the Substitution Jutsu. In any case, that means that we've got company."

…

Meanwhile, up in the treetops, Zabuza was watching the group with interest.

 _You gotta be kidding me. The Demon Brothers lost to a bunch of little snot-nosed kids? Guess they're losing their edge,_ thought Zabuza, taking the giant sword from of his back and getting ready to throw it. _The only one of them who looks even remotely like a ninja is the twerp in the cloak. This'll be an easy payday._

…

"Get down!" yelled Boruto as a giant sword came flying through the air, forcing everyone to duck before it finally became lodged in a nearby tree.

Landing on top of the sword was a powerfully built man with short brown hair and wearing a Hidden Mist Village forehead protector, a white face mask, a scabbard for his weapon, the straps for which were across his bare chest, black and white camouflage arm warmers with matching Shinobi sandals, and gray pants.

 _I know that guy… he must be…_ thought Boruto, recalling his father's story about his journey to the Land of Waves.

Naruto, meanwhile, was grinning with barely contained excitement. _Here it is! My chance to shine! Believe it! I'm ready this time, I'm not gonna lose out to Sasuke! Not this time!_ he thought.

Boruto walked up to the man on the sword. "Zabuza Momochi, I presume? Rogue ninja from the Village Hidden In The Mist," he said, his left hand resting on his sword.

 _Rogue ninja? Whatever! Nothing's gonna stop me! Ready, go!_ thought Naruto as he darted forward, only to be held back by Boruto's arm.

"Down, Naruto, down, boy. Wouldn't want you getting caught in the crossfire, so stand back," said Boruto.

"What?! But, why?!" demanded Naruto.

"This guy is nothing like the Demon Brothers. He's in a completely different league," explained Boruto, closing his eyes as a faint blue glow appeared on his right arm, while black markings appeared near his right eye, causing Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura to gasp in shock and step back. "If he's our foe, then I'll need these."

Zabuza chuckled. "You're not thinking about fighting me, are you, kid? It's too bad, seeing as you came all the way from Konoha, but you'll have to hand over the old man. Do it, and I'll think about letting you and the rest of the runts walk away," he said.

 _What's going on with his tatoos, or marks, or whatever? Why are they glowing? And where'd those black marks on his face come from?_ thought Naruto.

 _Does Boruto have some kind of special power?_ thought Sakura.

"All right, you three! Manji Defense Formation, protect the bridge builder, and stay the Hell out of this fight!" yelled Boruto.

"Huh?" said Sakura, confused.

"Kakashi and I taught you teamwork, now it's time to put it into practice!" said Boruto before his eyes flew open, the Jogan in his right eye active as his marks spread to cover the entire right side of his body. "Ready when you are, Zabuza."

 _His eye… what kind of dojutsu is that? It's definately not the Sharingan. It kinda looks like Hinata's Byakugan, but there's something off about it,_ thought Sasuke.

"Well, you're an interesting one, I'll give you that kid," said Zabuza as a thick mist came rolling in. "In the Assassination Unit of the Hidden Mist, we had a standing order to destroy Konoha jonin on sight. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to exterminate the old man. Now!"

Tasuna let out a gasp of fear. At this, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura rushed to his side with their kunai knives drawn as Boruto drew his sword.

"So, I'll have to eliminate you first, eh, kid? So be it. Nothing personal. Just business," said Zabuza, before, quick as a flash, he pulled his sword out of the tree trunk, and made his way to a nearby lake, where he stood upon the water as he performed a hand sign while mist swirled around him.

"He's over there!" said Naruto.

"Standing on the water!" said Sakura.

As Zabuza stood among the swirling mists, Boruto was able to pick up the changes in the assassin's chakra with his Jogan.

 _He's building up a massive amount of chakra… good. The more chakra he builds up, the easier he'll be for me to track with my Jogan,_ thought Boruto.

"Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu!" said Zabuza, before he disappeared into thin air in a cloud of mist. A single green leaf that was blown off by the wind landing exactly where the assassin had just been standing.

"He vanished!" said Naruto.

"Sensei…" said Sakura, fear evident in her voice.

"He'll be coming after me first," said Boruto.

"But, who is he?" asked Sakura.

"He's Zabuza Momochi. He's the ex-leader of the Hidden Mist Assassination Unit, and a master of the Silent Killing technique," explained Boruto.

"S-silent…?" said Naruto, fear evident in his voice.

"It's exactly what it sounds like, Naruto. It happens in an instant, with no warning of any kind. One moment you're just minding your own business on an assignment, the next you're in the afterlife. It's that fast and that deadly. My Jogan can't fully neutralize it, so whatever you do, don't lower your guard."

"What's a Jogan?" asked Sakura.

"It's the dojutsu in my right eye, and that's all you need to know."

Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke all shuddered with fear at Boruto's words.

"Well, if we fail, we'll only lose our lives in the struggle," said Boruto nonchalantly.

"How can you even talk like that?!" snapped Sakura.

All the while, the mist around them grew thicker and thicker, something that Naruto pointed out.

"The Land of Waves is surrounded by ocean. The swirling mists are ever-present," explained Tasuna.

Not even a moment later, the mist grew so thick that Boruto disappeared from the genin's vision.

"Sensei!" called Sakura as her teammates gasped and shuddered with fear.

As the mist continued to grow increasingly thicker, the minutes past by in what felt like years as the three genin kept shaking in terror.

" _Eight points."_

Sakura gasped. "What's that?!" she said.

" _Larynx. Spine. Lungs. Liver. Jugular. Subgladian artery. Kidneys. Heart. Now… which will be my kill point?"_

These words caused the fear that was coursing through everyone but Boruto's veins to drastically increase. Boruto, meanwhile, took a deep breath to get ahold of his nerves before performing a hand sign that caused his chakra to appear and start swirling around him, his cloak fluttering behind him as the rush of wind cleared away the mist that hid him from his team, and sent shivers up the genins' spines, especially Sasuke, who began shivering as though he were standing in sub-zero temperatures.

 _What an intense thirst for blood! One shallow breath, any movement of the eye, is enough to bring on instant death,_ thought Sasuke, the kunai in his hand trembling. _If it goes on like this, I'll go insane! A clash of two jonin intent to kill… I've never felt anything so chilling. It's as if my own life has been choked off… no! I can't bear it! I'd rather take my own life!_

Before Sasuke could do anything drastic, Boruto's voice called out to him.

"Take a deep breath, and calm down. I will protect you with my life, just as you would protect Sakura's with yours. I know you would, I've seen it. The same goes for the rest of you. I will not allow my comrades to die. Not this time. Trust me, I've got this!" said Boruto, causing everyone to make noises that sounded like gasping.

" _I wouldn't be so sure, kid,"_ said Zabuza, before he appeared in an instant behind Tasuna, Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto, causing the bunch of them to freeze like deer caught in headlights. "It's over!"

However, before Zabuza could strike anyone down, Boruto appeared almost like lightning and ran Zabuza through with his own sword.

However, the liquid that was leaking through the mortal wound wasn't blood, but rather it looked like…

 _Water. This is just a clone!_ thought Boruto.

"Boruto! Behind you!" cried Naruto.

As the Water Clone vanished, Boruto looked behind him to see a second Zabuza appear, but was too late to stop him.

"DIE!" yelled Zabuza as he swung his sword at Boruto. However, the moment Zabuza's sword pierced Boruto's flesh, he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

 _What the-?! A shadow clone!_ thought Zabuza. _It can't be! Even in the mist, he saw through my illusion and created one of his one!_ A second later, someone grabbed Zabuza's hair from behind as a sword went up against his neck.

"Twitch, and I will open your throat," said Boruto. "Now it's over! You're done!"

"All right! That's my boy!" said Naruto, feeling an immense amount of pride in his son.

Sakura, meanwhile, chuckled nervously while Sasuke remained stoic. However, Sakura wasn't the only one who was chuckling.

"Finished… you really don't get it, do you? I'll never be beaten with cheap tricks like that. I'll admit, you are full of surprises, though. You'd already performed the Shadow Clone Jutsu when you made your little speech. Very skillfully executed. You had your clone say those words to draw my attention while you hid in the mist, waiting for me to make my move… nice try."

"But, I'm not that easy to fool!" said the real Zabuza as he appeared behind Boruto, while the Water Clone in front of him vanished.

"Hey! That one's a clone too!" yelled Naruto, helpless to watch as Zabuza struck Boruto down, only for him to vanish in a puff of smoke again as the real Boruto appeared and held his sword at Zabuza's throat once again.

"You seem easy enough to fool to me," said Boruto.

"Well, well, you certainly are a crafty one. What's your name? I might just have to enter you into my Bingo Book after this, assuming either of us walk away from this," said Zabuza, clearly impressed.

"My name's Boruto Uzumaki," said Boruto, right before Zabuza elbowed him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of Boruto and forcing him to let go. What followed didn't look so much like a sword fight to those watching, but rather, a deadly dance. Even more so when Boruto and Zabuza both lost their swords and began fighting with taijutsu, both of them managing to score some pretty solid shots before they picked up their weapons again.

Unfortunately, Boruto gave Zabuza an opening, allowing the assassin to land a hit that sent the teenager flying through the air.

"Now!" said Zabuza as he dragged his sword along the ground, moving at high speeds as he tried to catch up to Boruto, only to stop dead in his tracks at the sight of some small spikes on the ground. "Makibishi spikes! Trying to slow me down...hmph. Foolish," said Zabuza as he leapt over the spikes.

"Boruto!" yelled Naruto.

 _I can't believe Boruto-Sensei got kicked through the air like that!_ thought Sakura.

 _He has great physical skill too…_ thought Sasuke.

Boruto landed in the nearby lake. Pulling his head up above the surface, he realized there was something wrong with the water.

 _This water isn't water. It's dense and heavy…_ thought Boruto.

"Hah, fool," said Zabuza as he appeared right behind him and performed a apid series of hand signs. "Water Prison Jutsu!"

 _Oh, crap!_ thought Boruto as he became imprisoned within a dome of water. _Escaping into the water was a bad mistake… and if Dad gets himself killed because of it, it's game over for me too…_

Zabuza chuckled. "This prison is made of water, but it's stronger than steel. It's hard to fight when you can't move… you put up an enjoyable fight, I'll give you that much, Boruto," he said. "I'll finish you off later. But, first, your little friends will have to be eliminated. Water Clone Jutsu!"

Boruto growled. _He's even more skilled than Dad made him out to be in his stories…_ thought Boruto.

As a second Zabuza made of water rose up out of the lake, Naruto couldn't help but whimper in fear as his eyes grew wide and his lips trembled.

The Water Clone chuckled. "You think wearing a headband makes you a ninja. When you've hovered between life and death so many times it doesn't faze you, then you _may_ be called a ninja. When you've become so deadly your profile is entered in my Bingo Book, then you _may_ have earned the title ninja. But, to call upstarts like you ninja… is a joke!" the clone said before it performed a hand sign and vanished in a cloud of mist once again.

 _He disappeared again!_ thought Naruto before the Water Clone suddenly reappeared and hit him in the face with knee, sending him flying and knocking his headband off.

"You're just brats!" snarled the Water Clone.

"Naruto!" cried Sakura as Naruto struggled to pull himself up again.

Boruto growled in anger. "Listen up! Get the bridge builder and run like the Devil himself is after you! This is a fight you can't win! He's using all his power to keep me in this Water Prison, so he can only attack you with the clone, but the clone can't go far from his real body, so he can't attack you if you get away from him, Now, run! And don't look back!" yelled Boruto.

 _Run away? Not an option,_ thought Sasuke. _That became unthinkable the moment you got caught. No matter how fast we run or how far we go, he'll track us down… and wipe us out. If we try a Manji Defense Formation, he can get around it in an instant! In the end, if we're on our own, we're finished. Our only chance of survival is to rescue you._

"We've got to do it!" yelled Sasuke before he ran at the Water Clone, throwing shuriken at it as he went. The Water Clone, meanwhile, simply took out his sword and deflected them all with a single sweep of his weapon, while Sasuke leapt into the air, looking to bring his elbow crashing down on the clone's head.

The clone chuckled. _Too easy,_ it thought before grabbing Sasuke right out of the air by his throat and tossing him away like he was nothing more than used scrap paper.

"Sasuke-Kun! No!" cried Sakura.

"He got Sasuke!" exclaimed Naruto, before forcing himself to turn and look at Zabuza, shaking like a leaf in the wind as he did so. _So, this is what a jonin is! A true elite ninja! I-I gotta get away! If I don't, seriously! He'll annihilate me!_ thought Naruto. As he turned to run away, Naruto pressed the hand where he stabbed himself onto the forest floor, causing a surge of pain to run through it. Naruto gasped as he looked down at his bandaged hand and began recalling his Oath of Pain.

 _Upon this wound, I make this pledge, believe it! I will never back down again, and let someone else rescue me. I will never run away. Sasuke may have beaten me to Sakura, but that's all he's gonna beat me at from here on out!_

Naruto turned to look at Zabuza's Water Clone, more specifically, the headband that it had underneath its foot, recalling everything that he'd been through to get to where he was today, everything he had been through to finally become a ninja.

 _That's right. I'm a ninja now, believe it!_ thought Naruto as he pulled himself up off the ground. _I swore an Oath of Pain… I won't run away!_

Naruto then charged head-on at Zabuza's Water Clone, yelling the whole way.

"Wha-? Dad, no!" yelled Boruto, causing Zabuza to cast a confused look at him.

"Ahhhhhh! Naruto! What in the world are you doing?!" screamed Sakura.

 _Hmph. Fool,_ thought the Water Clone as Naruto charged head-on at it, only to get kicked in the stomach so hard he went flying backwards, a trail of blood flying from his mouth as he tumbled in a cloud of dust.

"What are you thinking, charging at him by yourself?! Eve Sasuke couldn't get to him! We're only genin, we can't defeat a jonin! What did you think you'd accomplish by that?!" cried Sakura.

As Naruto struggled to his feet, crying and whimpering in pain as he did so, Sakura caught sight of something in his hand.

 _The headband? That's what he wanted?_ thought Sakura, confused while Sasuke, Boruto, and Zabuza simply looked at Naruto, perplexed.

Naruto finally managed to make it to his feet, a trail of blood leaking frok his mouth. "Hey, you… the freak with no eyebrows… put this in your Bingo Book. The ninja that will become the Seventh Hokage of the Village Hidden In The Leaves…" he said as he put his headband back on. "He never backs down… his name's Naruto Uzumaki!"

 _Now, there's the Naruto I know!_ thought Boruto, smiling.

 _I thought he was all talk before, but this kid's got guts!_ thought Tasuna, looking at Naruto appraisingly.

"All right, Sasuke, Sakura, listen up, can you hear me?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah, I hear you," replied Sasuke.

"Loud and clear," said Sakura.

"I've got a plan."

 _Hmph. NOW he's got a plan? This guy…_ thought Sasuke before he spoke aloud. "So, you're finally thinking about teamwork, huh?"

 _Why do I have this feeling? Naruto's so… determined,_ thought Sakura before she spoke aloud. "We're with you, Naruto!" she said, a look of determination to match Naruto's crossing her face.

"All right, then, guys… let's go wild!" said Naruto as he wiped the blood off his face. "Let's bring this guy down!"

Zabuza's Water Clone chuckled. "Such big words from such a little man. You think your little plan is going to keep you in the game?"

Something about what the Water Clone said didn't sit right with Boruto. "What in the name of all things sacred are you doing?! I told you guys to run! This battle was over the moment I got snagged, so stop stopping and run! This mission isn't about trying to prove how brave you are, it's about protecting the bridge builder! Stay on mission!" yelled Boruto.

Naruto looked over his shoulder. "Bridge builder?" he said.

Tasuna sighed. "Well, I guess… this all happened because of me. Because of my desire to live. But, I won't let that stand in your way now. Forget about me, and do what you have to do to save your sensei!"

Sasuke chuckled. "All right, you hear that?" he said.

"Yeah, believe it, you ready?" said Naruto.

"Ready as I'll ever be," said Sakura, pulling out her kunai.

Zabuza's Water Clone couldn't help but laugh at the genin who looked so determined. "You really haven't learned anything, have you? Still playing your little game, pretending to be ninja. When I was your age, this hand had already crushed many opponents," it said, causing Naruto, Sakura, and Tasuna to gasp aloud in terror.

"Zabuza the Demon…" said Boruto, recalling what he'd learned years ago during a school trip.

"Oh, so I'm in your Bingo Book," said the real Zabuza.

"Long ago, in the Village Hidden In The Mist, aka Blood Mist Village, before a student could become a ninja, there was one final test," said Boruto.

"Mmm… you know about the graduation exam," said Zabuza.

"What graduation exam?" asked Naruto.

Boruto gave Zabuza a loathing look as his Water Clone laughed.

"What's the big deal, anyway? We had graduation tests too," said Naruto.

The Water Clone's laughter grew louder before he spoke.

"Did you have to kill the other students to pass?"

This information caused Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura to gasp in horror as the Water Clone continued.

"Imagine, young ninja like you, eating together, training together. And then comes the final exam. Only they've changed the rules: kill or be killed. You can't stop while your opponant still breathes. He or she was your friend, your brother, your sister, they shared your dreams. Now, it's him or you."

"That's so cruel," said Sakura.

 _So's life,_ thought Boruto, recalling kneeling in his parents' blood as his father imparted his final words to him. "It was about ten years ago in Hidden Mist Village. The graduation exam… underwent a transformation. A fatal transformation. A year prior, a dark and sinister evil had filled the school with terror. Some punk kid who wasn't even a ninja waltzed right up to the class, and took down nearly a thousand other students. They called him Zabuza, the Demon of the Hidden Mist," explained Boruto, causing the genin to gasp in horror while both Zabuza and his Water Clone looked as though they were recalling the sweetest memory of their lives.

"It… it felt… so… GOOD!"

Whatever fear the genin were feeling at that moment dramatically amplified before Zabuza's Water Clone sent Sasuke sprawling to the ground, before driving its elbow into Sasuke's chest, causing him to cough up a lot of blood.

"Sasuke-Kun!" cried Sakura in terror as Boruto let out a horrified gasp.

Zabuza's Water Clone pinned Sasuke to the ground while reaching for its sword as Sakura ran up to the assassin and tried punching him with all her might. She scored a direct hit on Zabuza's chest, causing the Water Clone to stumble a little, allowing Sasuke to start pulling himself up as Sakura managed to land a few more blows on Zabuza's Water Clone, before the clone swatted the kunoichi aside like she was nothing more than an insect, sending Sakura flying a good couple of feet away, where she was knocked out after her head struck an inconveniently placed rock. Or so it seemed, before "Sakura" turned into a tree trunk.

 _Huh? The Replacement Jutsu!_ thought the clone before it felt sharp object pierce through it from behind. Turning around, the Water Clone saw that several kunai knives had been thrown into its back, and a few more were heading its way, but it was too late to move out of the way.

The kunai pierced the Water Clone, causing it to dissolve into a puddle of water.

 _That takes care of the clone,_ thought Sakura. _Now to deal with the-_

However, before Sakura could finish her thought, a new Water Clone appeared and delivered a vicious backhand to Sakura, sending her flying a couple of feet before she hit her head on a rock, knocking her out for real this time.

"Hmph. You're nothing," said the Water Clone.

"Stop right there!" yelled Naruto as he made a hand sign. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

A swarm of Naruto copies appeared out of thin air, surrounding th Water Clone from all sides.

"Oh… Shadow Clones. And there's quite a few of them," said the Water Clone as it looked around the area.

As one, the Naruto Platoon raised their kunai, ready for a fight. "Here we go!" they all said before leaping into the air and dog-piling onto the Water Clone. With a decent amount of effort, the Water Clone rose up from the pile, tossing all of them off, much to Tasuna 's horror.

"His skills are too advanced. He's too powerful… there's no way to defeat him!" said Tasuna as the Shadow Clones vanished in puffs of smoke.

"I'm not giving up, I still have this!" said Naruto as he pulled something out of his bag and tossed it to Sasuke. When he caught the object, something clicked as he spun around.

 _So, that was your plan! Not bad, Naruto!_ thought Sasuke as he unfolded the object Naruto had tossed him, which turned out to be a large shuriken. "Demon Wind Shuriken: Windmill of Shadows!"

"A shuriken?" said the Water Clone, amused. "You'll never touch me with that."

However, that didn't seem to deter Sasuke as he threw the shuriken, which sailed past the Water Clone and headed for the real Zabuza.

"So, you passed the clone and aimed for my real body… smart," said Zabuza before he caught the shuriken in his free hand. "But, not smart enough!"

A second later, a second shuriken emerged from the shadow of the one Zabuza caught, looped back around, and headed right for the assassin.

"A second shuriken in the shadow of the first? The Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!" said Zabuza.

 _The second shuriken's on target! And he can't catch this one,_ thought Sakura.

However, nobody said anything about Zabuza not being able to dodge it, which is exactly what the assassin did by jumping over the shuriken.

"I told you! A shuriken can't touch me!" said Zabuza.

However, Sasuke didn't seem concerned one bit about having missed, and it quickly became apparent as to why. In a puff of smoke, the shuriken transformed into the real Naruto, catching everyone present off guard.

"Eat this!" yelled Naruto as he tossed a kunai at Zabuza and fell into the lake. At the same moment, Boruto got his sword ready and cracked his neck, itching for Round Two.

As the kunai drew closer to him, a look of terror crossed Zabuza's face as he pulled his hand out of the Water Prison Jutsu and his Water Clone turned into a puddle. As fast as he could, Zabuza pulled out his sword and was barely able to parry Boruto's opening strike.

"Awesome plan, Naruto!" Boruto said with a smirk and a laugh as the crossed blades with Zabuza, who was trying desperately to keep his balance against the teenager. "I'll be wanting to know the specifics after we get out of this mess in one piece!"

"You got it, Boruto!" said Naruto.

Boruto and Zabuza swept clashing their blades against one another for the better part of fifteen minutes before they ended up in a sword lock, each trying to overpower the other. Unfortunately for Zabuza, keeping the Water Clone and the Water Prison around for as long as he did had taken a toll on him both physically and on his chakra.

"So… you say that hovering between life and death so many times it no longer fazes you makes you a ninja. When you become so deadly your profile is entered into the Bingo Book, you become a ninja. But, what about feeling your baby sister's blood wet against your skin, and knowing that it was only an act of God that she survived, let alone made a full recovery, while your comrades and closest friends were struck down all around you, helpless before an unstoppable foe?" said Boruto as he pressed his sword against Zabuza's.

 _Huh? Boruto has a baby sister which means… I have a daughter where he comes from,_ thought Naruto, his mind reeling with shock, which caused him to start sinking for a moment.

"Or what about when your entire village is burning around you, crumbling down upon your head? The Academy where you learned to become a ninja, the hospital where you were born, the house you called your home, all while people who aren't even ninja are slaughtered like swine while you are helpless to save them, trapped by the horde of people running to safety? A ninja is not only as good as his abilities or how many times he's cheated death, because he will ultimately come up against someone who's just that much stronger than he is, and will ultimately be killed. A ninja who dies peacefully in their sleep or surrounded by those they love are about as rare as a giant squid," said Boruto, before he delivered a Gentle Fist strike to Zabuza's leg, causing the rogue ninja to buckle and break the sword lock while Boruto used his chakra to propel himself backwards.

"A ninja is as good as his experiences make him, and who he makes those experiences with," said Boruto as he removed his cloak and tossed it aside before performing a hand sign as Zabuza tried to pull himself up off the ground. "And now, it's time for you to get a good look at the Uzumaki Ninja Handbook! Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Six duplicates of Boruto sprang into existence in a puff of smoke before they ran up to Zabuza, using their chakra to kick him into the air with enough force to send him flying several feet straight up, where Boruto followed him, performed a flip in the air, and brought the back of his heel down directly upon Zabuza's head.

"Uzumaki Barrage!" yelled Boruto before performing a backflip off Zabuza's head and landing smoothly on his feet.

 _This kid…_ thought Zabuza as he struggled to pull himself back up again, having great difficulty doing so. _What is he? The way he moves… the way he fights with that dojutsu… I wonder…_

"That eye of yours… can you… can you see the future?" asked Zabuza, starting to feel afraid, along with several other emotions that he wasn't used to feeling.

Boruto chuckled as he performed a series of hand signs, causing what Naruto recognized as a Rasengan, before it suddenly began to look different. "I don't _see_ the future. I _am_ the future. I am legacy of the Uzumaki Clan and the Hidden Leaf Village, hailing from decades from this point in time. And being from the future, I can tell you that this is your last contract," he said, confusing Zabuza as the Rasengan in his hand began to spark with electricity.

"You know what the biggest problem with water jutsu is? It's an excellent lightning rod. Perfect for amplifying the damage dealt by this little technique I've cooked up, something that Kakashi Hatake tried and failed to invent. Lightning Style: Electrorasengan!" yelled Boruto before he launched the attack, which detonated in a mighty explosion of electrical energy, forcing everyone present to take cover. When the smoke cleared, Zabuza was lying in the center of a four-foot deep crater, badly burned, but still alive, if only just barely.

"Sasuke, take care of Sakura, make sure she's okay. She took quite a nasty bump on the head during that fight," said Boruto as he walked up to the downed assassin, staggering as he did so from his massive chakra drain. "Now then, Zabuza, as long as you're just lying there, badly injured, pay attention-"

Before Boruto could finish talking, he instinctively caught a pair of throwing needles that were thrown at him. "Ah, yes… I forgot about your sidekick. Haku, get down here before I throw you down here. You'll both want to hear this. And don't bother with the tracker ninja bullshit. I happen to know better."

"Impressive… that eye of yours is something special," said a young male voice. Down from a nearby treetop came a ninja with short black hair wearing a green and gray coat with a blue shirt underneath, black pants, brown shinobi sandals, and a small gray mask, which the ninja removed to reveal the face of a young man around Boruto's age.

 _Huh. Haku's a bit more manly than in my Dad's stories,_ thought Boruto before he spoke aloud. "Do you really think Gato will allow you to just walk away after this failure? Because, I can tell you for certain, that if you continue to persue the bridge builder, you will both die by Gato's hand. He will betray you and destroy you, no matter how good you both are. Unless…"

"Unless what?" said Zabuza through gritted teeth as he hissed in pain.

"Unless you both listen to my alternative."

 **And thus concludes Chapter Seven! Stay tuned next time as we check back in on Sumire, who's going to be digging up some roots, if you catch my drift, something that Boruto will eventually get roped into, of course, while Sarada may end up meeting her Uncle Itachi. In the meantime, be sure to fave, follow, and review!**


End file.
